On Wednesday, the Sensex and Nifty50 were trading higher ahead of the Union Budget 2023 and the US Fed meeting. The SGX Nifty, a leading indicator of how the markets will perform, was up 0.43% this morning, indicating a positive start.

As of 10:15 a.m., the 30-stock Sensex was up 445 points, or 0.75%, at 59,994, while the 50-stock Nifty50 was up 128 points, or 0.73%, at 17,790.

Markets finished in the green earlier on Tuesday, ahead of the budget announcement. According to the Economic Survey 2023, the Indian economy is expected to develop at a rate of 6-6.8% in FY24, up from 7% in FY23.

The Adani Group made headlines as a result of Adani Enterprises’ 20,000 crore follow-on public offer (FPO). The FPO was only 3% subscribed on the second day, but it flew through on the final day. Most Adani Group stocks recovered as well, with six of the nine group firms closing the day in the green on Tuesday.

However, eight of the nine Adani Group stocks were down on Wednesday morning, with the flagship Adani Enterprises stock down 2.28%. Adani Total Gas and Adani Wilmar have both returned to their respective lower circuits.

The Nifty50 index’s top gainers and losers

The budget is the focus of everyone’s attention.

Investors anticipate encouraging statements from the finance minister in terms of capital flows to support sectors in today’s budget.

“We are hopeful that the Union Budget will continue to place a strong emphasis on capital expenditure, including physical, digital, and social infrastructure; this will help crowd in private investments, which have already begun to increase,” said Subhrakant Panda, president of FICCI.

The government’s borrowing program for the following fiscal year is a key monitorable during the budget. “All eyes are now on the budget which might decide the trajectory of growth as well as the direction of interest rates given the borrowing program that will be unveiled tomorrow. The gross borrowing figures, which we anticipate to be 16 lakh crore,” said Lakshmi Iyer, CEO-Investment Advisory, Kotak Investment Advisors.

Industry executives are also thinking about Digital India, especially given the government’s emphasis on giving digital access to its services. “The country is witnessing a digital revolution, bringing dramatic changes in sectors including as e-payments, digital literacy, financial inclusion, geographic mapping, rural development, and many more. “We expect that the 2019 budget will assist us in continuing to establish a strong digital India that will benefit Indians from all walks of life,” said Anil Kumar Jain, CEO of NIXI, a non-profit government organization focused on developing the country’s internet infrastructure.

Positive global market signals

US markets closed higher on Tuesday, boosted by corporate earnings and ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy decision. Furthermore, data indicated that labor costs in the United States climbed at the slowest rate in a year in the fourth quarter, as pay growth slowed.

The Fed is expected to raise interest rates by 25 basis points to control inflation. On Tuesday, the S& P 500 rose 1.46%, the Nasdaq rose 1.67%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.09%.

On Wednesday, Asian markets were mainly positive, with the Shanghai Composite Index trading flat, the Taiwan TSEC 50 up 0.35%, the Nikkei 225 up 0.18%, and the Hang Seng up 0.15%.

Stocks to keep an eye on

Adani Enterprises: The Adani Group’s flagship company successfully completed its FPO on the final day, with non-institutional investors and qualified institutional purchasers leading the way (QIB). The 20,000 crores FPO was oversubscribed 1.12 times, despite only 12% participation from regular investors.

Reliance Industries: Reliance Consumer Products, the company’s FMCG business, has formed a collaboration with Sri Lanka’s Maligan Biscuit to assist it to break into the biscuit industry.

Adani Ports & SEZ: The Israeli government has given the business and its partner Gadot Group control of the Haifa port.

Vodafone Idea: Vodafone Idea’s board of directors has approved the preferential allotment of 1,600 10-lakh optionally convertible debentures to ATC Telecom.

Stocks under F&O ban on Tuesday

Ambuja Cements is still on the F&O blacklist today.