Markets: Sensex slumps for 3rd straight session, ends 241 points lower. Nifty ended 71.80 points lower at 18,127.30. About 754 shares advanced, 2699 shares declined, and 86 shares were unchanged. All sectors ended the day in red, barring Nifty IT index which ended flat.

The Indian rupee advanced against the U.S. currency on Thursday, tracking a fall in the dollar index ahead of U.S. data.

The rupee last traded at 82.7625 per U.S. dollar, up marginally from 82.81 in the previous session. The rupee held an 82.65 to 82.80 range on volumes that were better than Wednesday, but lower than usual.

The volume on the interbank order matching system was $4.6 billion, compared to $4.4 billion the day before and this month’s daily average of $5.6 billion.

Also read: SGX Nifty Signals A Positive Start

Crude oil ended higher for the third consecutive day as it closed above the resistance near $77.75/bbl. In today’s early session crude continues to trade higher by 0.51%. Crude has been supported by hopes of demand revival from China after strict Zero COVID policy.

old remained unchanged in the previous session as lack of triggers kept the market quiet. Although gold moved higher above $1830/oz it once again closed near $1825/oz as US consumer confidence print came in better than expected.

Taiwanese and South Korean stock markets ended Thursday’s session in green following mixed sentiment in global markets. FTSE TWSE Taiwan 50 Index rose 170.7 points or 1.66% to 11,024.39 and KOSPI Composite Index climbed 27.78 points or 1.19% to 2,356.73.

The Nikkei share average ended the day up 0.46% at 26,507.87, after dropping as low as 26,269.80 in the previous session for the first time since Oct. 13. Share of Toshiba ended 4.25% higher and touched an intraday high of 7.61% after local media reported that the company’s preferred bidder, Japan Industrial Partners (JIP), is set to seal a $10.6 billion loan this week.