Sensex Today | Share Market Live Updates: GIFT Nifty marginally up; Asia falls after Fed minutes hint at elevated rates

Asian stocks suffered a downturn on Thursday after Wall Street reported losses overnight, following the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve's recent meeting. This report indicated that interest rates may stay elevated for a prolonged period. Investors and market participators will now shift their focus to US employment data to be released on Friday, following suggestions from the Federal Reserve's December minutes. Meanwhile, in Asia, investors are closely monitoring China's Caixin services PMI from December to read the economic resilience of the world's second-largest economy. The survey showed an expansion of service activity in China, accelerating at the quickest rate in five months due to a surge in new business.

Despite the downturn in equities, Treasuries in Asia remained relatively stable, with a minor decrease in the 10-year Treasury yield to 3.9% on Wednesday. Additionally, US manufacturing data released on Wednesday demonstrated that activity is still contracting. Simultaneously, separate figures revealed a marginal drop in job openings in November, alluding to the labor market's potential softening.

In other news, geopolitical tensions escalated as Iran announced that the recent attacks causing nearly 100 casualties in the country were retaliations for its stance against Israel. As these tensions grew, crude oil prices experienced a lift, also being propelled by supply issues in Libya and OPEC's commitment to stabilize prices.

In contrast, Bitcoin prices plummeted, erasing nearly all of the cryptocurrency's year-to-date gains. This decline also impacted GIFT Nifty Futures, which only traded 33 points higher at 21,613 in early transactions. This indicates a marginally positive start for the Indian benchmark.

Asian equities were affected by the downward trajectory of their US counterparts, with the Federal Reserve minutes failing to meet market expectations. Japanese benchmarks experienced a slump on the first trading day of the year following a holiday break. Meanwhile, stocks in Australia and South Korea also dipped, while contract prices for Hong Kong stocks rose slightly. US share futures remained fairly stagnant during Asian trading hours after the S&P 500 closed Wednesday 0.8% lower, marking the continuation of daily declines that started on the final trading day of 2023.

Finally, US stocks experienced another round of losses at the start of the year. The S&P 500 fell 38.02 points to 4,704.81 but stays within 2% of its record set two years ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased 284.85 points to 37,430.19, and the Nasdaq Composite was hit hardest, declining 173.73 points, reaching 14,592.21.