According to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India, gold reserves held domestically grew to 60% of total holdings as of September 30, up from 50% at the end of March. According to the RBI's "Half Yearly Report on Management of Foreign Exchange Reserves," domestic gold holdings increased by more than 100 tonnes between April and September to 510.46 metric tonnes, up from 408 metric tonnes at the end of March. As of September 30, the RBI possessed 854.73 tonnes of gold, compared with 822.10 tonnes at the end of the previous fiscal year.
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Indian Markets
- Money Markets Minute: The call rate fluctuated around the RBI's standing deposit facility of 6.25% for most of the session but ultimately closed at the repo rate of 6.50%. This rise was attributed to increased demand for funds from certain banks toward the end of the session. The one-day call money rate closed at 6.50%, up from 6.25% on Monday, while the weighted average call money rate fell to 6.44%, compared with 6.62% the previous day.
- Government Bond Brief: Yields fell as the 10-year US Treasury note hit an intraday high of 4.32%, a peak not seen in nearly four months. Traders managed to absorb the impact due to a drop in overnight indexed swap rates and by covering short positions in anticipation of a data-heavy week. The 10-year benchmark 7.10%, 2034 bond closed with a yield of 6.86%, slightly down from 6.87% on Monday. Market turnover reached ₹422.15 billion, up from ₹399.85 billion on Monday.
- Corporate Bond Beat: Corporate bond yields in the secondary market held steady within a narrow range, with market participants focusing primarily on essential portfolio needs. Transactions totalling ₹90.05 billion were recorded on the exchanges, up from ₹74.19 billion on Monday.
- Forex Flash: The rupee remained stable against the dollar, closing within the same narrow range as Monday. Some banks sold dollars, likely on behalf of the RBI, to counter the pressure from ongoing dollar purchases by importers. The rupee ended at 84.0750 per dollar, nearly unchanged from Monday's close of 84.0775 per dollar.
- Stocks Spotlight: Gains in banking stocks helped benchmark indices recover from intraday losses and end higher for a second consecutive day. Robust quarterly earnings from some major banks and relatively cheaper valuations led to buying in these stocks. The Nifty 50 ended up 0.5% at 24466.85 points. Sensex moved the same way and ended at 80369.03, up 0.5%.
International Markets
- US Stocks: The benchmark indexes ended mixed on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq finishing at a new high ahead of crucial earnings announcements this week. Alphabet shares were up more than 5% after the Google parent surpassed third-quarter revenue projections and reported an AI-driven boom in its cloud division. The stock closed the regular session up 1.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.36% to 42,233.05, the S&P 500 rose 0.16% to 5,832.92, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.78% to 18,712.75.
- Treasuries: The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields reached a nearly four-month high on investor reluctance to acquire the paper ahead of next week's elections but fell later in the day following a successful seven-year note auction. The November 5 election in the US has entered its last stretch, with opinion polls still too close to determine a winner between Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and former Republican President Donald Trump. US 10-year yield fell by 0.6 basis point to 4.272%.
- Currency: On Tuesday, the dollar reached three-month highs against the yen, but was little changed against most major currencies as traders waited for next week's US election and a flurry of incoming US economic data. The dollar was last up 0.12% on Tuesday, trading at 153.47 yen. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, increased 0.01% to 104.27, while the euro fell 0.03% to $1.0815.
Events This Week
October 30, Wednesday:
- US Q3 Advance estimate GDP.
- US Pending home sales index for September.
- US Metropolitan area employment and unemployment for September.
- India Infrastructure output for September.
- India M3 Money supply for Oct 18 week.
October 31, Thursday:
- US Q3 Employment cost index.
- US Weekly export sales.
- US Unemployment insurance weekly claims report for Oct 26 week.
- US Agricultural prices for September.
- India Federal fiscal deficit for September.
- India RBI Monetary and credit information review.
- India Infrastructure output for September.
November 1, Friday:
- US Employment report for October.
- US Manufacturing PMI for October.
- US Construction spending for September.
- India NSE, BSE to conduct the Diwali Muhurat trading session at 1800 IST.
- India S&P Global Manufacturing PMI for October.
- India Bank Loan Growth for Oct 18 week.
- India Deposit growth for Oct 18 week.
- India FX Reserves for Oct 25 week.
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