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Sales of existing homes in the United States pulled back in March, according to industry data released Thursday, with transactions bogged down by elevated mortgage rates.Existing home sales fell 4.3 percent from February to a seasonally adjusted 4.19 million rate, said the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The figure was in line with analyst expectations."Though rebounding from cyclical lows, home sales are stuck because interest rates have not made any major moves," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun in a statement.Inventory numbers have not changed massively either, he told reporters.The association added that from a year ago, home sales were down 3.7 percent.According to home loan finance firm Freddie Mac, the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.88 percent as of April 11, up from the prior week.Mortgage rates rose quickly in the past two years as the Federal Reserve rapidly hiked the benchmark lending rate to tackle surging inflation.While the central bank has signaled it expects rate cuts this year, all eyes are on when the first reduction will take place.Yun noted that with a rise in jobs created, there are also more aspiring home buyers in the market.The total housing inventory registered at end-March was up from February's level, according to the NAR.The median price across housing types rose 4.8 percent from the prior year to $393,500, the highest in seven months.This was also the "highest price ever for the month of March," the NAR said.

India's leading stock exchange BSE has cautioned investors about some fake, unauthorised and fraudulent videos and audios impersonating its managing director and chief executive officer Sundararaman Ramamurthy doing the rounds on social media, recommending certain investments and advisory in stocks/shares.BSE's caution comes following a similar alert from the NSE a week ago where the latter had sounded alarm on fake videos of its CEO and MD Ashishkumar Chauhan recommending stocks.BSE on Thursday said fake audio and videos were created through, "innovative and ingenious technology" impersonating BSE’s MD & CEO.“It has come to our notice that some fake, unauthorised and fraudulent videos and audios created through innovative and ingenious technology impersonating BSE’s managing director and chief executive officer, Sundararaman Ramamurthy are being circulated on social media recommending certain investments and advisory in stocks/shares," a BSE release said, adding that the MD & CEO does not initiate or endorse any such communication via Facebook or any other social media platform.BSE also advises investors/public not to trust such videos and audios and not to follow fake recommendation/unsolicited communication circulated through deceptive means impersonating BSE MD & CEO.The exchange has assured investors that it will initiate all possible steps to prevent misrepresentation by unknown elements.BSE has advised investors/public not to join any group on social media platforms impersonating BSE or its officials and also not rely on any stock/share recommendation.The stock exchange has also advised investors/public to exercise caution and not to engage or re-circulate such fraudulent messages and not to share any personal and/or confidential information, financial or otherwise.Investors and the public are also advised to verify the source of communication before making their decisions.BSE employees are not permitted to recommend dealing in/or promote any transactions in stocks/shares.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

Nifty on Thursday ended 152 points lower to fall below the 22,000-level and form a Bearish Engulfing candle below its 50-DEMA on the daily chart.The previous closure around 21,800 is likely to be seen as the pitstop for bears, and if bulls could not barge on there, we may test the 100 DEMA placed around 21,600 on an immediate basis, said Osho Krishan of Angel One.On the flipside, a series of resistance could be seen from 22,150-22,200, followed by the 20 DEMA at 22,300 zone. The undertone certainly favours the bears now and any rise should be seen as an opportunity to either exit longs or to look for bearish bets in the index, the analyst said.What should traders do? Here’s what analysts said:Jatin Gedia, SharekhanOn the daily charts, we can observe that the Nifty faced resistance at 22,300 – 22,320 zone where the key hourly moving averages were placed. On the downside, the Nifty is now approaching the lower end of the rising channel and the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement level 22,000 – 21,938. It shall be a crucial level to watch out for during the next few trading sessions. Divergence on the hourly time frame charts suggests that there could be a pullback over the next few trading sessions. However, we shall await price confirmation.Tejas Shah, JM Financial & BlinkXTechnically, the evidence continues to suggest that the markets are likely to remain under pressure in the near term. Presently, the bears are in full control of the markets and are using every pull back rally to create short positions. Support for Nifty is now seen at 21,950 and 21,700. On the higher side, the immediate resistance zone for Nifty is at 22,150-175 levels and the next resistance is at 22,300 mark. Overall, Thursday’s weekly closing above or below the psychological support of 22,000 will give direction for the coming week.Rupak De, LKP SecuritiesOn the hourly chart, the index has formed a bullish Harami pattern, suggesting a potential bullish reversal in the near term. Additionally, a bullish divergence is evident on the hourly chart. Looking ahead, the index might advance towards 22,200/22,300; sustained trading above 22,300 could further strengthen the market. Support is situated at 21,900.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Ace investor Dolly Khanna added three new smallcap stocks to her portfolio in the quarter ended March 31, 2024, viz. Repco Home Finance, Som Distilleries & Breweries and Selan Exploration Technology. The inclusion comes on the back of a strong rally in these stocks over the last one-year. Khanna bought a 1.11% stake in Repco Home Finance in the January-March quarter. The Chennai-based housing finance company was incorporated in 2000. Its returns in the last 12 months stand at an impressive 157%, a significant outperformance over the 26% returns given by Nifty during this period. In 2024 so far, the stock has delivered returns of 15%. In Som Distilleries, Khanna purchased a 1.14% stake in the said quarter. The stock’s returns in the last 12 months stand at 101% and so far this year at 15%.The brand known for its 'Hunter' beer brand also produces Pentagon Gold Edition Whisky, Milestone Blue and Legend Premium Whisky, White Fox Vodka, Milestone Brandy, Pentagon Rum and Black Fort Rum. As for Selan Exploration, this investor bought a 1.03% stake in the reported quarter. The Gurugram-based company is involved in the business of oil & gas exploration. This smallcap counter has seen its rally extend up to 144% over a 1-year period. On a year-to-date basis, the stock has shot up 29%. Shareholding of individual investors is reflected in the ‘Shareholding Pattern’ of BSE-listed companies on reaching 1% stake or above in the company. Khanna, whose portfolio is managed by her husband Rajiv Khanna, held 19 stocks at the end of the March quarter and its net worth is over Rs 553 crore according to Trendlyne data.Other stocks in her portfolio include Talbros Automotive, Zuari Industries, Rajshree Sugars & Chemicals, Control Print, Salzer Electronics, Butterfly Gandhimathi, Mangalore Chemicals & Fertilizers, Deepak Spinners and Prakash Pipes. Also Read: Ashish Kacholia trims stake in multibagger Aditya Vision, 2 more smallcaps in March quarter(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

NEW DELHI: India, the world’s fastest-growing major economy in recent years, is struggling to find a consistent flow of foreign investment as investors are spooked by the lack of steady and sustainable policies by New Delhi, economists said.Raghuram Rajan, former Reserve Bank of India governor, and Surjit Bhalla, former part-time member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Economic Advisory Council told ET Online that uncertainty concerning policies has increased, which is disturbing the flow of foreign investments in India.“Businesses are worried about the government changing the terms on them, about them privileging the tax authority to raise demands all the time. Eventually, these demands get thrown out of courts, but it is five or ten years of uncertainty,” Rajan said.Click here to view Part 1 of Decoding Bharat's Economy (Discussion on GDP, Inflation & Wealth creators)Net FDI flow into India rose from $22 billion in FY14 to $31 billion in FY19. However, the figure has more than halved to $13 billion in April-September 2023, down from $38 billion in the same period the year before, HSBC wrote in a note earlier this year. Bhalla said that while he doesn't see any hesitation from the companies' end, a host of policy issues mean that uncertainty has gone up for foreign investors and has called for 'consistency' in tax reforms."I think our tax rates are too high. Be it income tax rates, or direct income tax rates, they are too high. We have got a real distortion in our investment tax rate which is now 25 per cent and 42 per cent. We 100 per cent need reforms in our direct tax code for it to be consistent with corporate taxes," Bhalla said.Tariffs subject to whims & fancies?Both economists expressed displeasure over tariff policies which are announced and then rolled back, spurring uncertainty for companies, both foreign and domestic.India in 2023 announced compulsory licensing requirements for tech importers to boost local production, to the shock of prominent companies like Apple, Samsung, HP, Dell Technologies and others. However, it later withdrew the stringent measures."Now, what is the trade-off? Do we want the Narayana Murthys of the future to keep making trips to New Delhi to allow for their laptops to be imported, to arrange for their laptops to be imported? Rightfully, the government has withdrawn this proposal. I hope it stays dead,” Rajan said.Click here to view Part 2 of Decoding Bharat's Economy (Discussion on India's manufacturing, Revdi culture and inequality)"One day I wake up and say this tariff is going to go up and then another day I say something else. That kind of change of terms on which they came in is something that foreign investors worry about as it can make their economics unpredictable," he said."Apart from making it easier to do business, you have to make government policy more predictable. It should be less subject to whims & fancies," Rajan added.Another policy that the government rolled back was the plan to tax credit card spending overseas."Thankfully, it never got implemented. But the government came up with this bright idea that your credit card spending abroad will be effectively taxed,” Bhalla recalled. “Yes, no government is perfect. Thankfully, that policy did not get implemented and the can has been kicked down the road,” Bhalla said.Rajan added that the government must make it easy for businesses to set up in India. "Don't keep changing the rules every month. It will be helpful for Indian companies and foreign businesses both," Rajan added.India, resolved to be an attractive investment destinationIndia under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party has been able to attract the attention of global bigwigs like Apple and Tesla, supported by a focus on boosting manufacturing prowess.This comes at a time when companies are looking to reduce their exposure to China.Giving further fillip to India's prospects to attract foreign investments, Indian debt will be included in global bond indices led by JPMorgan Chase & Co in June and Bloomberg Emerging Market Local Currency Government Index from January 2025.ALSO READ: India's dire employment scenario visible in long queues for govt jobs The government has been on a drive to reduce the culture of red-tapism that existed for decades and created impediments to foreign investments.The growth rate of the Indian economy and its potential makes it an attractive destination. Drawing comparisons with the 8.4 per cent Q3FY24 GDP growth rate reading of India, former Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian noted the dip in foreign investment in recent years. "You can see foreign direct investment actually collapsed quite a bit," he said, while wondering if India is such an attractive place, and why their FDI flows are not higher.RBI data showed that net FDI inflows fell from $4.8 billion in H1FY24 to $19.6 billion in H1FY23. HSBC economists in their note attributed this fall to a shift in investor appetite rather than a loss of interest in India’s economic prospects.(This discussion is a part of ET Online's Election Special Decoding Bharat & Its Economy with Raghuram Rajan and Surjit Bhalla. Readers can catch the video series on Economic Times' YT Channel)