A Quiet Start to the Week

It looks like the Indian markets are in for a flat opening today. There isn’t much on the global front to drive the markets today apart from the reports that the Donald Trump administration is looking at ways to limit US investors’ portfolio flows into China. The SGX Nifty is currently trading seven points down at 11,578 levels and this indicates insipid trade that could characterise today’s markets.

The Asian markets are reeling under Monday blues following reports that the White House is considering curbs on US’ investment in China. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index has dropped 0.46 per cent while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite were hovering back and forth around the neutral line.  

Back home, the markets ended the last session of the week and the first day of a long October derivative series on a monotonous, albeit choppy, note in the absence of any enthusing cues. The Nifty was stuck in a narrow range of around 94 points before ending at 11,512, down by 59 points and the BSE Sensex closed below the 38,850 mark, down by 167 points. The broader markets underperformed with Nifty Mid-Cap and Small-Cap falling 1.09 and 1.17 per cent, respectively. On the sectoral front, all indices ended the session in red with Nifty Metal and Nifty Realty emerging the top losers.

The US stocks closed in negative terrain on Friday as reports from media houses indicated that the White House is considering limits on US’ investment in China. At the end, the Dow closed down 71 points, the S and P 500 declined 16 points and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 91 points.

The European indices rallied on Friday amid optimism about a US and China trade deal which overshadowed Brexit uncertainty. The UK’s FTSE 100 jumped 1.02 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.75 and 0.36 per cent, respectively.