11:00 am: Budget session of parliament continues in New Delhi.
2:30 pm: Trade Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at a chemical industry event in Mumbai.
3:00 pm: Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to launch MoPNG e Seva tomorrow in New Delhi.
5:00 pm: RBI to release weekly foreign exchange data in Mumbai.
6:00 pm: Former RBI Governor Bimal Jalan at an event in New Delhi.
6:30 pm: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley at NIPFP event in New Delhi.
LIVECHAT - QUIZ EAST The first of our Friday quizzes focuses on Asia and the week's top news. Tests your wits and googling speed, at 11.00 am. To join the conversation, click on the link: https://forms.thomsonreuters.com/communities/ INDIA TOP NEWS • Uber stalls India leasing scheme as driver incomes drop - sources Global ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies is rethinking its car leasing strategy in India, its second-biggest market, as drivers have returned dozens of leased cars early after the company cut incentives, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
• Tata Consultancy says plans to step up local hiring in US India's top software services exporter Tata Consultancy Services will step up local hiring in the United States and has no plans to cut investments there as it continues to expect robust growth from its biggest overseas market.
• India's Yes Bank launches up to $750 mln share sale - term sheet Yes Bank Ltd, India's fifth-biggest private sector lender by assets, has launched a share sale to institutions to raise as much as $750 million, according to a deal term sheet seen by Reuters.
• India's Snapdeal searches for funds, takeover speculation grows Indian online retailer Snapdeal is seeking investment to shore up its finances after unsuccessful talks with Chinese funds and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd as it battles to remain competitive, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.
• India's Bharti Airtel to buy Tikona's 4G business for $244 mln Telecommunications company Bharti Airtel said it would buy internet services provider Tikona Digital Networks' 4G business in a deal worth 16 billion rupees.
• India finmin calls banks to discuss new facility to drain cash India's finance ministry has called bankers into a meeting on Friday to discuss setting up a new facility to absorb surplus cash in the banking system, according to a letter sent to heads of lenders seen by Reuters on Thursday.
GLOBAL TOP NEWS • Trump demands do-or-die Friday vote on healthcare plan U.S. President Donald Trump will get a second chance to try to close the deal with Republican lawmakers on dismantling Obamacare in a high-stakes vote on a new healthcare bill rescheduled.
• Politics weigh as Korea's KEPCO eyes the Toshiba nuclear option South Korea's KEPCO, the likeliest suitor for Toshiba Corp's troubled nuclear business, is holding off from making an approach because of question marks over the scale of damage at the unit and political uncertainty in both South Korea and the United States, people with direct knowledge of the matter say.
• China is not militarising South China Sea, Premier Li says China is not militarising the South China Sea, Premier Li Keqiang said, although he acknowledged that defence equipment on islands in the disputed waterway had been placed there to maintain "freedom of navigation".
LOCAL MARKETS OUTLOOK (As reported by NewsRise) The SGX Nifty Futures were trading at 9,096.50, trading down 0.02 pct from its previous close.
The Indian rupee will likely open slightly higher against the dollar as a delayed vote on U.S. President Donald Trump’s healthcare bill reignited concerns about the implementation of his economic growth agenda, keeping the greenback under pressure.
Indian government bonds will likely edge lower in early trade, as U.S. Treasury yields snapped a four-session falling streak yesterday ahead of a vote on President Donald Trump’s healthcare reform bill today. The yield on the benchmark 6.97% bond maturing in 2026 is likely to trade in a 6.80%-6.86% band today. The bond had closed at 100.96 rupees, yielding 6.83%, yesterday.
GLOBAL MARKETS • Wall Street declined on Thursday after lawmakers delayed a vote on a healthcare bill seen as President Donald Trump's first policy test.
• The dollar recouped a little lost ground amid signs a delayed vote on President Donald Trump's healthcare bill would go ahead later in the day, though it remained unclear whether it would pass.
• The dollar was on the back foot when voting on the Trump administration's landmark healthcare bill was postponed, casting doubt on President Trump's ability to close political deals.
• U.S. Treasury prices fell on Thursday as investors waited for a vote by lawmakers on a bill to replace the Obamacare healthcare law, which is seen as a gauge of the Trump administration’s ability to implement near-term goals.
• Oil prices edged up, supported by a fall in Saudi exports to the United States, but overall markets remained under pressure on the back of a world market awash with fuel.
• Gold prices held steady amid a firmer dollar as markets waited to see if U.S. President Donald Trump will face hurdles on his economic agenda after U.S. lawmakers delayed a vote on a healthcare bill.
CLOSE FII INVESTMENTS EQUITIES DEBT PNDF spot 65.44/65.47 March 23 $167.2 mln $71.43 mln 10-yr bond yield 7.12 pct Month-to-date $3.04 bln $2.50 bln Year-to-date $4.60 bln $3.82 bln 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 = 65.4300 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Pradip Kakoti in Bengaluru)
