Results, bring them on

Another weak start is in store for the day. Global cues are not encouraging at all. The Hang Seng Index is down for the third day.

“You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result” - Mahatma Gandhi

As communities across the country celebrate their new year, the market will hope for an auspicious start to the main results season. The big number comes in from Infosys today.

Historically, it has never been one of the seasonally strong quarters. But the guidance and performance will be closely watched by the market as an indicator of things to come. The cues from foreign counterparts like Accenture and Oracle have been positive. If the market frenzy on Wednesday was any indication then the results should beat street estimates. Of course the usual result season rumors of bonus expectations added to the buying which saw the Sensex skyrocket by 434 points.

We expect a positive yet flat start. The results will give brief direction for the day.

Asian stocks have fallen with the Nikkei down around half a percent. China's first-quarter gross domestic product expanded at a faster-than-expected rate of 9.7% from the year-earlier period, while the consumer price index for March also climbed a faster-than-estimated 5.4%. While GDP and inflation figures beat estimates, it also raised concerns of further monetary tightening from Beijing could be coming soon. Kospi is marginally down while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is up almost a percent.

US indices recovered smartly from their lows as the House approved a spending bill that will avert a government shutdown. Commodities and energy stocks climbed higher. The Dow rose 14 points after falling 107 points earlier. S&P was flat and Nasdaq was marginally lower.

The jobless claims figure came surprisingly higher. The Labor Department reported first-time jobless claims increased by 27,000, to a weekly total of 412,000.

The dollar rose against the euro and fell against yen and pound. Oil for May delivery rose $1.32 to $108.42 a barrel. Gold futures for June delivery rose $19.30 to $1,474.40 an ounce.