Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could gain 59.50 points at the opening bell tracking gains in most Asian stocks.
Overseas, most Asian stocks gained. US stock benchmarks finished with slight gains Friday, 25 August 2017, halting weekly skids as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and Federal Reserve boss Janet Yellen delivered speeches at Jackson Hole, Wyo.
Yellen said the economy was stabilizing but made no specific remarks about monetary policy during her speech at the gathering of central bankers in Wyoming. Later Friday, Draghi said recoveries taking place in global economies are firming, though he said it was "at an earlier stage" in Europe and Japan.
Also at the Jackson Hole symposium, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the recent pace of growth in the world's third-largest economy is probably unsustainable and pledged to continue with very accommodative monetary policy for some time because the BOJ is far from its inflation target.
The consumer price index for Japan in July 2017 was at 100.1, up 0.4% over the past year and the same level as the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis.
On the geopolitical front, North Korea fired three ballistic missiles over the weekend and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Sunday that the U.S. will continue to push for negotiations to deescalate nuclear tensions on the Korean peninsula despite the provocative acts.
New orders for manufactured durable goods in July decreased by $16.7 billion or 6.8% to $229.2 billion, the US Census Bureau announced.
Key benchmark indices closed the session near the flat line in a lackluster trading on Thursday, 24 August 2017. The Sensex rose 28.05 points or 0.09% to settle at 31,596.06, its highest closing level since 17 August 2017.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 696.93 crore on Thursday, 24 August 2017, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 1044.38 crore on Thursday, 24 August 2017, as per provisional data.
The domestic stock market remained shut on Friday, 25 August 2017 on account of Ganesh Chaturthi.
NITI Aayog's 3-year Action Agenda was unveiled by the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, along with Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya, said a government release. The Action Agenda is an integral part of the 15-year Vision Document of India being drafted by the NITI Aayog. Think-tank NITI Aayog's three-year action plan (2017-2020) has suggested shifting the composition of expenditures by allocating a larger proportion of additional revenues that become available over time to high-priority sectors. It has replaced the 5-year plan of the erstwhile Planning Commission and would be soon followed by a 15-year vision document and a 7-year strategy document.
Among corporate news, Infosys will be in spotlight. In its press release issued after market hours on Thursday, 24 August 2017, the company has announced an overhaul of its Board of Directors (Board). The Board appointed Nandan Nilekani as a non-executive, non-independent director and as the Chairman of the Board with immediate effect. It has accepted the resignation of R. Seshasayee as the Chairman of the Board and as a director on the Board with immediate effect.
The Board has accepted the resignation of Dr. Vishal Sikka as the Executive Vice-Chairman of the Board and as a director on the Board with immediate effect. It has accepted the resignation of Professor Jeffrey S. Lehman as a director on the Board with immediate effect. It has accepted the resignation of Professor John Etchemendy as a director on the Board with immediate effect. It has accepted the resignation of Ravi Venkatesan as the Co-Chairman of the Board with immediate effect. However, he continues as an independent director.
Infosys' board held its first meeting on Friday, 25 August 2017 chaired by its newly elected Chairman Nandan Nilekani. Nilekani stated that the Board is focused on bringing complete stability to the company. It has also tasked its Committee of Directors to work with the CEO (U B Pravin Rao) and management to review and refresh the company's strategy by October.
In recent days there has been considerable discussion of the relationship between the Board of Directors of Infosys and N. R. Narayana Murthy who established the culture and ethos of Infosys, especially its culture of adhering to high corporate governance standards. The Board believes it to be unfortunate that various differences of opinion have arisen between Murthy and the Board in the recent past. The Board wishes to express that it was not its intention to cause Murthy or any other affected person any personal distress or anguish while stating its point of view, the company said in a statement.
Infosys said it has previously authorized investigations into allegations made by anonymous persons regarding the conduct of prior management, and each of these investigations concluded that there was no wrongdoing. While the Board and the company are focused on the future, consistent with the company's commitment to good governance, the new Chairman will get a full briefing on these investigations and the appropriate course of action will be decided, the company said.
As the Board has stated on numerous occasions, it takes the company's reputation for high corporate governance standards with the utmost seriousness, Infosys said. Hence, it has, as previously disclosed, decided that it will engage in further broad-based shareholder consultations to determine what further, if any, the company can take to ensure that it continues to adhere to high governance standards, Infosys said.
The Board has also approved the appointment of the executive recruitment firm Egon Zehnder to work with its Nominations and Remunerations Committee to review and identify the right candidate to be the company's next CEO and MD. Additionally, the Nominations and Remunerations Committee will deliberate on the long term governance structure of the Board and present its recommendations at the meeting of the Board in October. The Board announced that D N Prahlad is appointed as the Chairman of Edgeverve with immediate effect.
Finally, the Board would like to state that it is firmly focused on ensuring that the affairs of the company and the interests of all its stakeholders - its customers, employees, shareholders, officers and directors - are harmoniously aligned and enhanced, Infosys said.
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