India’s Sensex is expected to rise on Monday as investor confidence is likely to be lifted amid upbeat economic indicators from the US.
On Friday, the US stocks gained as investor sentiment turned positive amid encouraging economic indicators. According to data released on Friday by the Institute for Supply Management, Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index, which rates the relative level of business conditions including employment, production, new orders, prices, supplier deliveries, and inventories, rose to 53.1 in January up from 50.2 in December. Significantly, the index remained in the expansion zone with a reading above 50.
Meanwhile, according to data released on Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the nonfarm payrolls report, which measures the change in the number of people employed in the previous month, excluding the farming industry, rose to 157,000 in January from 196,000 in December. Also, according to data released on Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment report, which measures the percentage of the total workforce that was unemployed and actively seeking employment in the previous month, marginally rose to 7.9 percent in January from 7.8 percent in December.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.08 percent, the S&P 500 Index was up 1.01 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.18 percent.
On Monday, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.54 percent, or 127.74 points, to 23849.58. Among major gainers were Bank of China Ltd (2.09 percent) and Wharf Holdings Ltd (0.88 percent).
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average was up 0.48 percent, or 54.03 points, to 11245.37. Among major gainers were Nec Corp (10.74 percent), Sony Corp (9.45 percent) and Denso Corp (2.43 percent).
South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index rose 0.23 percent, or 4.47 points, to 1962.26.
On Friday, the Sensex declined 113.79 points to close at 19781.19. The overall market breadth was negative with 969 advances against 1179 declines. The BSE's Midcap Index fell 0.05 percent to 6967.50 and Smallcap Index dropped 0.25 percent to 7056.48.
