Morning News Call - India, January 21

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INDIA TOP NEWS • India sacks PNB executives for lapses in $2 billion fraud in first firings -sources India has sacked two executives of state-run Punjab National Bank for allegedly failing to prevent a $2 billion fraud, two sources said on Sunday, nearly a year after the country's biggest bank scam came to light and also dragged the government into the controversy.

• SBI says lenders awaiting SEBI decision on Etihad offer for Jet Airways - paper The State Bank of India (SBI)-led consortium of lenders is waiting for India’s capital markets regulator to decide on a bailout offer by Etihad Airways for the financially stressed Jet Airways, SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said, the Business Standard reported on Saturday.

• HDFC Bank profit up 20 percent in third quarter HDFC Bank, India's biggest lender by market value, reported a 20.31 percent rise in third-quarter net profit on Saturday, lifted by higher interest and fee income.

• Wipro expects small rise in IT services revenue in quarter Software services provider Wipro on Friday forecast a small rise in revenue growth from IT services for the quarter to March after beating third quarter profit estimates.

• Sun Pharma tumbles on reports of fresh whistleblower complaint Shares of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries plunged on Friday to near six-year lows, hit by reports that a whistleblower filed a complaint to regulators over transactions involving the top Indian drugmaker and its co-promotor.

• Indian central bank needs to ensure stability, head of bank says The head of India's central bank said on Friday he would take the steps necessary to maintain financial stability in the country and help create favourable conditions for growth.

GLOBAL TOP NEWS • China's economy cools in Q4, 2018 growth hits 28-year low China's economic growth cooled slightly in the fourth quarter from a year earlier as expected, weighed down by weak investment and faltering consumer confidence as Washington piled on trade pressure, leaving 2018 growth the weakest in 28 years.

• U.S. demands regular review of China trade reform The United States is pushing for regular reviews of China's progress on pledged trade reforms as a condition for a trade deal - and could again resort to tariffs if it deems Beijing has violated the agreement, according to sources briefed on negotiations to end the trade war between the two nations.

• Nissan CEO says new capital ties with Renault not discussed Nissan CEO Hirota Saikawa told reporters that he had not heard directly about a reported French proposal to integrate Nissan's management with France's Renault, adding that it was not the stage to discuss revising their capital ties.

LOCAL MARKETS OUTLOOK (As reported by NewsRise) • SGX Nifty nearest-month futures were trading 0.2 percent higher at 10,954.00 from its previous close.

• The Indian rupee is expected to open lower against the dollar after Brent crude oil reached the highest in two weeks. Losses in most of its Asian peers are further expected to hurt demand for the local currency, a dealer with a commodity company said.

• Indian government bonds are expected to trade lower in early session, tracking higher U.S. yields and crude oil prices. The yield on the benchmark 7.17 percent bond maturing in 2028 is likely to trade in a 7.58 percent - 7.63 percent band today.

GLOBAL MARKETS • U.S. stocks rallied on Friday, helping Wall Street's major indexes advance for the fourth consecutive week, as increased hopes the United States and China would resolve their trade dispute lifted shares across sectors.

• Asian markets kept their nerve as data showed the Chinese economy slowed at the end of last year, underlining the urgent need for more stimulus as Beijing wrestles with the United States over trade.

• The dollar hovered near a two-week high against a basket of currencies, supported by a sustained recovery in investor risk appetite which nudged U.S. bond yields higher.

• U.S. Treasury yields climbed to three-week highs on Friday as investors piled back into Wall Street on hopes Washington and Beijing were moving to end their trade dispute as well as on stronger-than-expected data on manufacturing output.

• Oil prices dipped as China reported its weakest annual economic growth in 28 years, although oil prices remain relatively well supported by supply cuts led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

• Gold prices inched up on expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will pause its multi-year interest rate hike cycle, but gains were limited by a recovery in investor appetite for risk.

CLOSE FII INVESTMENTS EQUITIES DEBT PNDF spot 71.13/71.16 January 18 -$17.55 mln $160.33 mln 10-yr bond yield 7.6 pct Month-to-date -$238.46 mln -$524.60 mln Year-to-date --- --- For additional data: India govt bond market volumes Stock market reports Non-deliverable forwards data Corporate debt stories [IN CORPD] Local market closing/intraday levels [IN SNAPSHOT] Monthly inflows [INFLOWS RTRS TABLE IN] ($1 = 71.22 Indian rupees) (Compiled by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru)