Sensex extends rally to 6th day, ends 333 pts higher; Nifty reclaims 19,800

CLOSING BELL ON SEPTEMBER 08, 2023: L&T, Airtel and banks were the major movers on Friday; the S&P BSE Sensex has rallied 1,767 points in the last six straight trading sessions.

SI Reporter New Delhi

8:07 AM

Bank of Canada says interest rates may not be high enough

>> Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem on Thursday said interest rates may not be high enough to bring inflation back down to target, sending a hawkish message after holding borrowing costs at a 22-year high a day earlier.

>> On Wednesday, the Bank of Canada (BoC) kept its key rate at 5%, noting the economy had entered a period of weaker growth, but said it could hike again should price pressures persist.

>> "We don't want to raise our policy rate more than we have to," Macklem said, adding that persistently high inflation would be worse for Canadians than high borrowing costs. "We need to stay the course."

Source: Reuters

8:04 AM

Fed's Williams: An 'open question' whether Fed will need to hike again

>> Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams on Thursday kept his options open over future US interest rate policy

>> He acknowledged falling inflation and a better balanced economy, suggesing there is no urgency for a rate rise later this month

>> "Things are moving in the right direction and we've got policy in a good place, but we're going to need to continue to be data dependent, watch developments and assess what we need to do" to achieve the central bank's goals, the official said.

>> Williams cautioned that while many parts of the economy appear to be on the mend from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the Fed is currently in a position where it's challenging to provide guidance beyond reiterating its commitment to get inflation back to target.

Source: Reuters

8:02 AM

Former Fed official Bullard says more rate hikes possible

>> The likelihood that inflation numbers are going to remain stubbornly high for a while could mean more interest rate increases, former St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said Thursday.

>> "Is inflation sticks around 4 per cent, the Fed will have to follow through on its promise rate increase sometime in the next couple of meetings, and there’s some risk that they’d have to go a little bit higher even from there," Bullard told CNBC in an interview.

>> Inflation numbers “have got to come down into the 3% range, and eventually the 2% range, and if that is not happening and they hang up too high, the Fed may have to do more,” he said.

Source: CNBC

8:00 AM

US indices end mixed overnight as rate hike fears resurface

7:58 AM

Philippines trade deficit climbs in July, imports and exports fall

>> The Philippine trade deficit increased to $4.2 billion in July, a climb compared to the $3.9 billion deficit seen in June.

>> Exports in July fell 1.2% year-on-year, a reversal from the 0.8% growth in June.

>> Imports plunged 15.3% year-on-year, a steeper fall from the 15.2% contraction in June.

>> Total external trade in goods amounted to $16.49 billion, which is 10.5% lower year on year, a steeper fall compared to the 9.5% decline in June.

Source: CNBC

7:56 AM

Japan economy grows less than expected in second quarter

>> Japan’s second quarter gross domestic product expanded less then expected

>> The economy grew 4.8% on a quarter-on-quarter annualized basis

>> This was lower than the 6% announced in the preliminary release in August, and below the 5.5% growth expected by economists polled by Reuters.

>> On a quarter-on-quarter basis, second quarter GDP climbed by 1.2% vs 1.5% rise seen in the preliminary basis and 1.3% expected by the Reuters poll

Source: CNBC

7:54 AM