FACTORS TO WATCH 10:00 am: Power Minister R.K. Singh, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, New & Renewable Energy Secretary Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi, Petroleum Secretary Tarun Kapoor, Tata Steel Managing Director and CII President T.V. Narayan, Tata Power Chief Executive and Managing Director Praveer Sinha among others at CII webinar on renewable energy. 11:00 am: Prime Minister to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of multiple development projects in Varanasi. 11:00 am: Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India Whole Time Member Mukulita Vijayawargiya at ASSOCHAM webinar on India’s bankruptcy code and valuation. 12:30 pm: Mercedes-Benz India Vice President Santosh Iyer at the virtual launch of new luxury vehicles. 3:00 pm: Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das, Financial Services Secretary Debasish Panda and other bank heads at The Economic Times Financial Inclusion summit. 3:20 pm: Reserve Bank of India former Deputy Governors Usha Thorat and N.S. Vishwanathan, SPJIMR Associate Professor - Finance Ananth Narayan, J P Morgan Chase Bank India Managing Director P.D. Singh at IMC Banking & Finance conference. 4:00 pm: GST Council Joint Secretary S.K. Rahman at TIOL webinar. 6:30 pm: Fifteenth Finance Commission Chairman N.K. Singh, Former Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian, NITI Aayog former Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya at India Policy Forum. INDIA TOP NEWS India bans Mastercard from issuing new cards in data storage row The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday indefinitely barred Mastercard from issuing new debit or credit cards to domestic customers for violating data storage rules, dealing a blow to the U.S. company in a key market. Infosys lifts annual revenue view as pandemic fuels digital boom Infosys raised its annual revenue forecast on Wednesday, as India's second-largest IT services company wins more contracts from global businesses expanding their digital offerings during the COVID-19 pandemic. India's microfinance sector hit as defaults surge in pandemic Small loan specialists in India that typically cater to people without bank accounts are facing a jump in pandemic-related defaults that could force some of them out of business, industry experts warn. India's June WPI inflation eases to 12.07% year-on-year -government India's annual wholesale price inflation eased to 12.07% in June from the previous month's record of 12.94%, despite a spike in costs of fuel and manufactured goods, government data showed on Wednesday. Indian government approves hike in inflation-linked wages for federal employees The Indian government on Wednesday said it has decided to restore a hike in inflation-linked wages for federal government employees and pensioners, a move that could improve demand for goods and services in an economy struggling due to COVID-19. India to provide subsidies for local shippers to win government tenders India will give financial support to local shippers to help them match the lowest bids offered by foreign carriers in global import tenders floated by Indian state agencies, an official statement said on Wednesday. India sugar stocks set to fall to 4-year low on record exports - trade body India's sugar inventories have been depleted by 19% and the country could start the 2021/22 marketing year with lowest the stocks in four years after mills exported a record amount in the current year, a leading trade body said on Wednesday. India tells China continuing border tensions not in either side's interests The failure of China and India to resolve the standoff over their disputed border in the western Himalayas, despite an agreement last year, is not in the interest of either side, India's foreign minister told his Chinese counterpart on Wednesday. GLOBAL TOP STORIES China's economy grows more slowly than expected in Q2 China's economy grew more slowly than expected in the second quarter, as slowing manufacturing activity, higher raw material costs and new COVID-19 outbreaks weighed on the recovery momentum. 1 U.S. Senate passes bill to ban all products from China's Xinjiang The U.S. Senate passed legislation on Wednesday to ban the import of products from China's Xinjiang region, the latest effort in Washington to punish Beijing for what U.S. officials say is an ongoing genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim groups. Twitter sees jump in government demands to remove content of reporters, news outlets Twitter saw a surge in government demands worldwide in 2020 to take down content posted by journalists and news outlets, according to data released by the social media platform. STATE OF THE MARKETS SGX Nifty nearest-month futures were 0.1% higher at 15,884.50. - NewsRise The Indian rupee is expected to edge higher against the U.S. currency, tracking the decline in Treasury yields and the dollar after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled no imminent change in the authority’s accommodative stance. - NewsRise Indian federal government bond yields are likely to open lower, tracking a pullback in U.S. Treasury yields after the Federal Reserve head again allayed inflation concerns. The yield on the new benchmark 6.10% bond maturing in 2031 is likely to trade in the 6.08%-6.13% band. - NewsRise Asian shares held firm after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. economy was "still a ways off" from levels the central bank wanted to see before tapering its monetary support. The S&P 500 ended with a gain after briefly hitting an intra-day record in a choppy session on Wednesday, as investors balanced worries about inflation with reassuring comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The dollar retreated from recent peaks, following further reassurance from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell that he was in no rush to tighten policy. U.S. Treasury yields fell after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday maintained his view that strong inflation will be temporary, even after data showed for the second day that price pressures rose more than expected in June. Oil prices fell more than 1%, extending losses as investors braced for more supplies following a compromise between top OPEC producers and as U.S. fuel stocks rose, raising concerns about demand in the world's largest consumer. Gold prices were flat on Thursday, hovering near a four-week high scaled in the previous session, after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jeremy Powell signalled "powerful support" for economic recovery and boosted the metal's appeal as an inflation hedge. CLOSE FII INVESTMENTS EQUITIES DEBT PNDF spot 74.62/74.65 July 14 69.91 crores 482.72 crores 10-yr bond yield 6.109% Month-to-date (3,673) crores (80) crores Year-to-date 56,671 crores (22,231) crores (FII investment numbers are in Indian rupees. Source: National Securities Depository Limited) 2 PICTURE OF THE DAY Children play on a flooded street after heavy rains in New Delhi, July 14. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi © 2021 Refinitiv. All rights reserved. Refinitiv 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036 [email protected] Please visit: Refinitiv for more information. click here privacy statement 3 .