Sensex, Nifty Extend Record-Breaking Run

Indian equity benchmarks rose to fresh record highs led by gains in Maruti Suzuki, Axis Bank, Larsen & Toubro and Tata Steel.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.32 percent to 33,147.13 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index advanced 0.47 percent to 10,343.80.

Sixteen out of 19 sector gauges compiled by BSE ended higher led by the S&P BSE Oil & Gas Index’s 2.2 percent surge. On the other hand, the S&P BSE Consumer Durables Index was the top sectoral loser, down 0.8 percent.

Shares of the Mumbai-based department store chain fell as much as 3.6 percent, the most since October 3, to Rs 508.50 after it reported loss in July-September quarter.

• Q2 loss at Rs 21.8 crore against estimate of profit of Rs 8.77 crore
• Revenue at Rs 838 crore versus estimate of Rs 1,060 crore
• Total costs at Rs 824 crore
• Company reported one-time loss of Rs 33.8 crore

Shares of the Mumbai-based drugmaker rose nearly 3 percent, the most since October 12, to Rs 538.75 after it receved U.S. drug regulator's nod for carvedilol phosphate extended release capsules in strengths of 10mg, 20mg, 40mg and 80 mg.

"Generic carvedilol phosphate extended release capsules, 10mg, 20mg, 40mg, 80mg are therapeutic equivalents of GSK’s Coreg CR extended release capsules," Sun Pharma said in a press release.

"As per IMS, Coreg CR had annual sales of approximately $208 million in the U.S. for the 12 months ended August 2017," the company added.

Shares of the Mumbai-based financial services firm jumped as much as 4 percent, the most in over a month, to Rs 203.25 after it beat consensus Bloomberg estimates in September quarter.

• Q2 net profit rises 45 percent to Rs 360 crore against estimate of Rs 313 crore
• Revenue up 14.2 percent at Rs 2,383 crore (YoY)
• Gross non-performing assets as a percentage of total advances at 5.8 percent versus 5.71 percent in the previous quarter
• Net non-performing assets unchanged at 3.31 percent sequentially
• Provision coverage ratio at 42.96 percent versus 43.43 percent (QoQ)

Shares of the Domino's Pizza chain operator rose as much as 5 percent, the most since October 5, to Rs 1,684 after it beat consensus Bloomberg estimates in July-September quarter.

• Q2 net profit more than doubles to Rs 48.5 crore versus estimate of Rs 26.10 crore
• Revenues rise 9.2 percent to Rs 726.6 crore versus estimate of Rs 724 crore
• Total costs at Rs 657 crore
• Standalone EBITDA at Rs 102 crore versus estimate of Rs 80 crore
• Standalone EBITDA Margins at 14.1 percent versus estimate of 11 percent
• Same-store-sales growth at 5.5 percent versus 4.2 percent (YoY) and 6.5 percent (QoQ)
• Reduction In Dunkin' losses continued in Q2

Shares of the electrical components maker declined 1.2 percent after it reported September quarter earnings post market hours on Wednesday.

• Q2 net profit jumped 25 percent to Rs 46.49 crore in July to September quarter
• Sales grew 15 percent to Rs 560 crore from Rs 486 crore during the same period year ago

Speaking to BloombergQuint Mithun Chittilappilly, managing director of the Kochi-based company said stabilizer, inverter and kitchen appliances segment did well in the September quarter.

Watch the complete interview:

• Engineers India: The stock gained nearly 10 percent, the most in over a year, to Rs 173.4 on the back of strong earnings. The company’s net profit jumped 25 percent to Rs 119 crore on the back of sales of Rs 429 crore.
• NBCC: The state-owned construction company rose over 5.5 percent, the most since October 17, to Rs 260 after the company said that it may get into road construction business.
• Jubilant Lifesciences: The Noida-based drugmaker rose nearly 6 percent, the most in over two months, to Rs 640 after HDFC Securities initiated coverage on the stock with a buy rating for target price of Rs 850 indicating an upside potential of 41 percent.
• Saksoft: The Chennai-based IT company rose as much as 14 percent, the most in over a month after its promoters SAK Industries acquired 0.9 percent stake in the company.

• Bank recapitalisation will reinvigorate lending which will boost the economy
• Without recapatilisation PSU banks could not have done lending
• Speed and size of recapitalisation is impressive
• Some PSU banks are looking attractive as they are way below levels they were 6-7 years ago
• Recapitalisation will plug holes and wipe out NPAs
• Dollar is no longer falling and do not see why rupee should appreciate

Auto and home loan lender Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Ltd. reported a loss for the sixth straight quarter, missing analyst estimates.

• Q2 net profit declined 17.7 percent to Rs 77.99 crore against estimate of Rs 164 crore
• Revenues rose 11.3 percent to Rs 1,660.7 crore compared to the same quarter last year
• Assets under management grew 14 percent to Rs 49,918 crore

Speaking to BloombergQuint Ramesh Iyer, vice-chairman and managing director at the company expects pick up in tipper and construction equipment sale in the second half which will add to company’s growth going ahead.

Watch the complete interview:

Shares of the Domino's pizza chain operator were trading 1 percent lower at Rs 1,589.25 ahead of September quarter earnings which will be declared later in the day.

Key things to watch out for:

• Standalone profit seen rising 22.7 percent to Rs 26.5 crore versus Rs 21.6 crore (YoY)
• Standalone revenue seen growing at 9 percent to Rs 725 crore versus Rs 665 crore (YoY)
• Standalone EBITDA seen advancing 25.8 percent to Rs 80 crore versus Rs 63.6 Cr (YoY)
• Standalone EBITDA margins seen at 11 percent versus 9.6 percent (YoY)

Shares of L&T Finance Holdings were trading 2.2 percent higher at Rs 199.55 ahead of its September quarter earnings.

Key things to watch out for:

• Net profit seen rising 25.8 percent at Rs 312 crore versus Rs 248 crore (YoY)
• Loan growth is expected to remain robust at 16 percent (YoY)
• Asset quality to be stable but provisioning to remain elevated
• Q1FY18 gross non-performing assets stood at 5.71 percent

• HDFC Standard Life board approves IPO of upto 29.98 crore shares
• HDFC Standard Life IPO to open from November 7-9
• Khadim India IPO to open from November 2-6, sets price band at Rs 745-750/share

Shares of the state-owned oil marketing companies rallied after brokerage house UBS initiated coverage on most of them with a bullish rating.

The broking firm expects to see earnings pick up driven by steady volume and margin expansion. Besides that, it also expects support from the government on free pricing for socially sensitive cooking fuel, liquefied petroleum gas, to drive constant earnings growth.

RBL Bank Ltd.’s profit surpassed analyst estimates in the July-September quarter, driven by strong net interest income.

• Net profit rose 67.8 percent to Rs 151 crore compared to the same period last year, the lender said in an exchange filing. The consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg stood at Rs 144 crore.

Speaking to BloombergQuint, Vishwavir Ahuja, MD and CEO of the Kolhapur-based lender said better than expected margin improvement and stable asset quality worked in their favour in the September quarter.

Watch the complete interview:

Shares of the Bangalore-based public-sector lender rose 0.7 percent to Rs 66.55 after it reported September quarter earnings.

• Net interest income up 21.7 percent at Rs 1,008 crore versus Rs 827.8 crore
• Net profit up 20.1 percent at Rs 185.5 crore versus Rs 154.4 crore
• Other income at Rs 447 crore versus Rs 388 crore
• Provisions at Rs 449.7 crore versus Rs 411 crore (QoQ)
• Gross NPA at 7.06 percent versus 7.30 percent (QoQ)
• Net NPA at 4.86 percent versus 5.24 percent (QoQ)
• Provision coverage ratio at 59.29 percent
• Capital adequacy ratio improved to 13.31 percent post QIP

Shares of the Chennai-based software developer were locked in 20 percent upper circuit at Rs 291, its highest level in over 16 years after it informed stock exchanges that its board of directors will meet on October 31 to discuss delisting of shares of the company from BSE, National Stock Exchange and Metropolitan Stock Exchange.

Shares of the battery maker declined as much as 5.4 percent, the most in nearly one year, to Rs 197.80 after its profit declined in July-September quarter.

• Revenue up 23.2 percent at Rs 2371.3 crore
• Net Profit down 25.5 percent at Rs 136 crore
• EBITDA up 2.3 percent at Rs 295.8 crore
• Margins at 12.5 percent versus 15 percent

Shares of the private sector lender were trading 3.3 percent higher at Rs 336.75 ahead of its September quarter earnings which will be declared later in the day.

Shares of the country's biggest infrastructure developer rose as much as 3.2 percent to Rs 1,243 after its subsidiary L&T Construction won orders worth Rs 3,551 crore.

Key order highlights:

• Transportation and water effluent treatment business bagged orders worth Rs 1,123 crore
• Water and effluent treatment business won order worth Rs 572 crore
• Smart world and communication business won order worth Rs 213 crore from Metro Link Express from Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar Company for design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of telecommunications systems
• Transportation infrastructure business won procurement and construction order worth Rs 777 crore from PWD, Delhi

Shares of the Mumbai-based power transmission company jumped as much as 4.86 percent, the most in over a month, to Rs 301 after it won orders worth Rs 1,931 crore.

Key order highlights:

• Transmission and distribution business bagged orders worth Rs 1,756 crore across India, SAARC, Middle East, Africa and Americas
• Cable business secured order worth Rs 112 crore covering various types of cables
• Railways business secured order worth Rs 54 crore from IRCON for railway electrification work in North India
• Solar business received order worth Rs 9 crore for construction of 6-megawatt ground mount project in North India

• Bank stocks are still away from 2012 highs
• Extreme valuations are clearly evident in the market
• Approach bank stocks by looking at the growth rate
• Expect growth differential to narrow between PSU and private sector banks
• Cement demand cannot surprise on the upside
• Investment cycle will pick when there is visibility in return on equities
• Seeing benign oil prices, not worried about period spikes
• Like SpiceJet based on attractive valuations
• Not very bullish on telecom sector
• RIL is going to be a big disruptor in telecom market ,

Shares of the country's biggest lender by market cap fell as much as 6 percent, the most in over three years, to Rs 1,685 after the Reserve Bank of India asked it to classify one of its account as non-performing asset.

Meanwhile, the stock recovered from intraday low and as of 10:26 a.m. was down 1 percent at Rs 1,75.85.

Shares of the Gurugram-based agricultural chemical maker fell as much as 8.3 percent, the most in nearly one year, to Rs 720 after it missed consensus earnings estimates compiled by Bloomberg

• Q2 net profit fell 21 percent to Rs 80.34 crore versus estimate of Rs 102 crore
• Revenue from operations declined 2 percent to Rs 561 crore from Rs 571.94 crore during the same period last year

• Star Cement has 85.5 lakh shares (2 percent equity) change hands in four blocks on the National Stock Exchange at Rs 110-110.65 per share
• Stock rises 5.8 percent, the most in over a month, to Rs 117

Buyers and sellers were not immediately known

Source: Bloomberg

Shares of the public-sector lenders continued their surge for second day. The Nifty PSU Bank Index rose as much as 8 percent on top of yesterday's 30 percent rally.

Indian equity benchmarks edged lower ahead of the derivatives expiry for the month of October due later in the day.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 0.1 percent to 33,012 and the NSE Nifty 50 Index slipped 0.15 percent to 10,280.

Six out of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange were trading lower led by Nifty Private Bank Index's 0.8 percent drop. On the flipside, government-owned banks were witnessing buying interest for second day in a row with the Nifty PSU Bank Index rising as much as 7 percent.

• Export related sectors likely to do well as economy is recovering in U.S. and Europe
• Like export oriented companies in specialty chemicals and textile space
• Big PSU bank shares will be much higher from current levels in next two months on expectations of revival in growth
• HUL and Asian Paints side stepped the GST problems which their smaller counterparts faced

Bankers feel that the selloff in Indian government bonds post the announcement of capital injection plan is more or less over. They expect the funding plan to help banks clean up their balance sheet and in turn strengthen the economy.

BlackRock has turned less bullish on local-currency bonds in Asia as it sees U.S. yields rising on the back of a Federal Reserve interest-rate increase in December. The money manager although likes bonds in China, Indonesia and India, but it pared some exposure last month.

The rupee is expected to gain against the dollar in line with other Asian currencies as investors await the European Central Bank decision and the appointment of the next Federal Reserve chief.

• Nifty October Futures closed with a discount of 11.6 points from an 11.6 point premium
• Nifty November Futures trading at 10,325, premium of 30 to spot
• Nifty Rollover at 44 percent, Bank Nifty Rollover at 47 percent
• Nifty open interest up 2 percent, Bank Nifty open interest up 16 percent across series
• India VIX closed higher by 1.5 percent at 11.76
• Max open interest for November series at 10,500 Call and 10,000 Put strike
• October Call strikes 10,200 , 10,250 saw unwinding and addition was seen for 10,300 & 10,350 strikes

• October Put strike 10,250, 10,300 saw open interest addition

• Yes Bank
• Biocon
• Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals
• Cummins India
• Equitas Holdings
• Gic Housing Finance
• Indiabulls Ventures
• Jubilant Foodworks
• L&T Finance Holdings
• Shoppers Stop
• Sharda Cropchem
• Srei Infrastructure
• Vijaya Bank
• Whirlpool of India
• United Spirits

Hindustan Unilever (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue up 6 percent at Rs 8309 crore
• EBITDA up 19.7 percent at Rs 1682 crore
• Margins at 20.2 percent versus 17.9 percent
• Profit up 16.4 percent at Rs 1276 crore
• Volumes up 4 percent

Exide (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue up 23.2 percent at Rs 2371.3 crore
• Net Profit down 25.5 percent at Rs 136 crore
• EBITDA up 2.3 percent at Rs 295.8 crore
• Margins at 12.5 percent versus 15 percent

RBL Bank (Q2FY18 YoY)

• NII up 38.7 percent to Rs 420.2 crore
• Net profit up 67.8 percent to Rs 151 crore
• Gross NPA at 1.44 percent versus 1.46 percent (QoQ)
• Net NPA at 0.78 percent versus 0.81 percent (QoQ)

PNB Housing (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Net Interest Income grew 69 percent to Rs 386 crore
• Net Profit up 51 percent to Rs 208 crore
• GNPA at 0.34 percent, Net NPA at 0.26 percent

EIL (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Net Sales up 27 percent at Rs 429 crore
• Net profit up 25 percent at Rs 119 crore
• EBITDA up 48 percent at Rs 139.2 crore
• Margins at 32.4 percent versus 27.8 percent

Quess Corp (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue up 25 percent at Rs 1274 crore
• EBITDA up 18 percent at Rs 66 crore
• Margins at 5.2 percent versus 5.5 percent
• Profit up 370 percent at Rs 141 crore
• Income tax credit from previous year of Rs 67.5 crore pushed profits higher

Agro Foods (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue down 2.4 percent at Rs 197 crore
• Net Profit up 15.9 percent at Rs 8 crore
• EBITDA up 18.4 percent at Rs 17.4 crore
• Margins at 8.8 percent versus 7.3 percent

Everest Industries (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenues up 7.5 percent at Rs 259 crore
• Net profit at Rs 4.5 crore versus loss of Rs 8 crore
• EBITDA at Rs 11 crore versus EBITDA loss of Rs 2 crore
• Margins at 4.2 percent versus -0.9 percent

Syngene (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenues up 10.5 percent at Rs 335 crore
• Net profit up 2.9 percent at Rs 76.9 crore
• EBITDA up 7.6 percent at Rs 113.5 crore
• Margins at 33.9 percent versus 34.8 percent

Mindtree (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue up 3.3 percent at Rs 1332 crore
• Net Profit up 2.5 percent at Rs 125 crore
• EBIT up 11.3 percent at Rs 109 crore
• EBIT Margin at 8.2 percent versus 7.6 percent

M&M Financial (Q2FY18 YoY)

• NII up 16.3 percent at Rs 911 crore
• Net Profit down 17.7 percent at Rs 78 crore
• PI Industries (Q2FY18 YoY)
• Revenue down 2 percent at Rs 561 crore
• Profit down 21 percent at Rs 80 crore
• EBITDA down 5 percent at Rs 121.5 crore
• Margins at 21.7 percent versus 23.4 percent

Tata Communication (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue down 2.1 percent at Rs 4,218 crore
• EBITDA up 1.2 percent at Rs 565.5 crore
• Margins at 13.4 percent versus 13 percent
• Net loss of Rs 250 crore versus profit of Rs 32 crore
• Exceptional expense of Rs 186 crore

Astec LifeSciences (Q2FY18 YoY)

• Revenue up 6.7 percent at Rs 96 crore
• Net Profit down 39.6 percent at Rs 6.7 crore
• EBITDA down 36.1 percent at Rs 14.7 crore

• Margins at 15.3 percent versus 26.9 percent

• Reliance Nippon Life Asset Management continues on Day 2. The issue was subscribed 4.6 times on Day 1.

MAS Financial Services

• TIMF Holdings bought 5.83 lakh shares at Rs 659.29 each

JB chemicals and Pharma

• Kotak Mahindra AMC sold 6 lakh shares or 0.7 percent equity stake at Rs 280 each

Saksoft

• Promoter SAK Industries Pvt Ltd bought 98,765 shares or 0.9 percent equity stake at Rs 200 each
• Ajit Thomas sold 1 lakh shares or 1 percent equity stake at Rs 200.01 each

• JMT Auto: Circuit filter revised to 10 percent

CLSA on Tata Motors

• Maintain Sell; Hiked price target to Rs 395 from Rs 380
• JLR faces a challenging industry environment, given softening luxury auto demand in West
• Volume growth, excluding new models, has decelerated sharply
• Response to ‘Discovery’ has been a tad soft
• Expect margins to remain under pressure given rising incentives, weakening product mix and an ageing portfolio
• Skeptical on turnaround of India business
• Price target hiked to factor in lower India losses and a stronger GBP/INR

Credit Suisse on Oil & Gas Sector

• Strong petchem demand and lower ethylene supplies aiding naphtha
• LPG markets see supply tightness in U.S. and Middle East
• Expect strong Naphtha and LPG margins for the next two quarters
• Seasonally peak petchem demand and winter heating demand to boost Naphtha and LPG
• LPG and Naphtha account for 5 percent and 8 percent respectively of Indian refinery output
• Positive for Indian refiners and GAIL; Indian Oil and BPCL are top picks

Deutsche Bank on HCL Technologies

• Maintain Sell; hiked price target to Rs 720 from Rs 700
• Maintained margin guidance is aided by extremely conservative software amortisation policy
• Q2 earnings was a miss and expect seasonal weakness in H2
• HCL to deliver FY18 $ revenue growth of 11 percent (YoY), EBIT margin of 19.9 percent and EPS of Rs 59.4
• Cut earnings estimate by 4-5 percent for FY18/FY19
• Expect HCL’s earnings to grow at CAGR of 3 percent over FY18-20

IDFC Securities on HCL Technologies

• Maintain Neutral with a price target of Rs 895
• Q2 results: Another revenue miss, but margin beat
• Revenue drag in H2 to restrict growth to lower end of guidance
• Expect Revenue and EPS to grow at CAGR of 10 percent and 8 percent respectively over FY17-19
• Negatives: deceleration in IMS, risk of accelerated IP investments and revenue erosion of legacy portfolio
• Limited margin levers and sustained pricing pressure leave limited room for positive surprise on earnings

Macquarie on HCL technologies

• Maintain Outperform with price target of Rs 1,033
• Expect HCL to post the strongest $ revenue growth of 12 percent (YoY) in FY18
• Large deal wins in H1FY18 to help the company meet its FY18 guidance
• Pecking order: HCL Tech>Infosys>TCS >Wipro and Tech Mahindra

IDFC Securities on Kotak Mahindra Bank

• Maintain Neutral with price target of Rs 910
• Q2FY18 Highlights: Strong and better-than-expected loan growth and growth in savings deposits
• Kotak’s to deliver better earnings than sector as it does not face corporate stress
• Kotak needs to deliver consistently on higher loan growth and fees to justify its rich valuations
• Recap to benefit private banks according to management

Credit Suisse on Kotak Mahindra Bank

• Maintain Neutral with price target of Rs 950
• Q2FY18: Loan growth remains strong but net interest margins decline
• Cut earnings estimates by 3-4 percent on lower NIMs and other income
• Stock remains expensive

Macquarie on Kotak Mahindra Bank

• Maintain Neutral with price target of Rs 940
• Guidance of 20 percent YoY loan growth for FY18 looks achievable
• Expect 21 percent loan CAGR over FY18-20
• Kotak’s well capitalised but lower leverage is suppressing return on equity
• Buy on HDFC Bank as it is quality franchise, equally impressive and offers much higher RoE for slightly higher valuations

Nomura on Exide

• Maintain Buy with price target of Rs 251
• Inventory build-up post GST in Q1FY18 benefitted volumes
• Revenue growth of 14 percent in H1FY18 would be a better way to look at growth
• Price increases in replacement segment important for margin trajectory as lead prices are higher
• Expect 14.8 percent and 15 percent margin in FY18 and FY19 estimates respectively; Expect lead cost increases to be passed on

Deutsche Bank on Exide

• Maintain Hold with price target of Rs 200
• Commodity pressures lead to subdued earnings growth in Q2
• Revenue beat likely on account of price hikes taken to offset pressure from higher lead prices.
• Expect robust revenue growth led by stabilisation in automotive battery market-share/pricing and cyclical uptick in industrial batteries
• Expect EPS to grow at CAGR of 13 percent over FY17-20

IDFC Securities on Glaxosmithkline Pharma

1. Maintain Underperform with price target of Rs 2,191
2. Q2 revenues impacted by 6 percent due to deflationary impact in prices on account of the GST
3. Glaxo showing signs of recovery after prolonged period of slow growth and supply related disruptions
4. H1FY18 was significantly impacted by GST, Turnaround to get further delayed

UBS initiates coverage on Oil Marketing Companies

• Initiate coverage of PSU OMCs Indian Oil (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) with Buy rating.
• Among standalone refiners, they initiate coverage of Chennai Petroleum (CPCL) with a Buy, and Mangalore Refinery (MRPL) with a Neutral.
• Expect earnings to pick up, driven by steady volume and margin expansion
• Expect govt support on free pricing for socially sensitive cooking fuel (LPG) should also drive constant earnings growth
• Forecast 12 percent CAGR over FY18-22 for PSU OMC’s

• RBI asks HDFC Bank to classify one of its accounts as NPA
• HDFC Life board approves IPO of up to 29.98 crore shares
• Wipro completes acquisition of Cooper Software
• Sarda Energy & Minerals shuts down one of its power generating units for replacement of old turbine machine
• Phoneix Mills says NCLT approves scheme of merger of two of its subsidiaries
• GVK Power confirmed that it has received the order for Navi Mumbai Airport
• SBI and Canara Bank clarified that it has yet to take a decision on sale of any non-core assets
• Quess Corp to acquire 70 percent stake in Vedang Cellular Services for Rs 40 crore
• Navkar Corp QIP Opens. Floor price set at Rs 192.29 per share

• BJP to observe note ban anniversary as anti-black money day
• Supreme Court refuses nod to JP Associates for Yamuna Expressway sale
• Deadline to link Aadhaar to government schemes may be extended to March 31
• HUL Q2 net profit expands most in ten quarters on strong volume growth
• Reliance Communications to shut 2G business, lose 4 crore users
• Why small businesses gain from state-run firms on bill discounting platform
• Inefficiencies to stay, but PSU banks can now compete better, says Credit Suisse
• Yellen is the standout Fed candidate if you go by Trump’s tweets
• 25 years on, mobile telephony at a crossroads: Rajeev Chandrasekhar
• Three factors to consider before bank recapitalisation
• Here are all the government sops that Gujarat has been promised

• Maharashtra loan waiver: 100 farmers linked to single Aadhaar number

Good Morning!

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of NSE Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, fell 0.3 percent to 10,262.

Stocks in Asia were mixed at the open following the biggest declines in seven weeks on Wall Street as uneven corporate earnings keep traders on edge ahead of reports from technology giants, banks and a European Central Bank meeting.

These are some of the key events coming up:

• Hong Kong reports on imports and exports on Thursday, while Japan updates on CPI Friday.
• The U.S. economy probably expanded at about a 2.5 percent annualized pace in the third quarter, restrained in part by the effects of two hurricanes, economists forecast the government to report on Friday.
• Norway’s Norges Bank and Sweden’s Riksbank rate decision on Thursday.

Commodities

• Gold rose 0.1 percent to $1,278.78 an ounce.
• West Texas Intermediate crude was at $52.15 a barrel.