Dull start in offing

For the last four trading sessions, the bulls have been marching higher and scaling to new heights. The phrase ‘market hit a new peak’ has become such a standard remark, that its absence on one day could hit market participants psyche more badly than any real fundamental factor. If we go by the early trends in SGX Nifty, it is pointing a dull start for the Indian markets as SGX Nifty is currently trading almost 26 points down below its yesterday’s close. The limelight will be on the US-China as they are expected to sign a ‘phase one’ trade deal. Some reports indicates that despite the interim pact, which is supposed to ink today, many fundamental issues between Washington and Beijing are still unresolved and this is one of the main reasons why the global market is trading tentative and nervous. All eyes will be on the phase one deal and a positive outcome will boost global markets sentiments and help FPIs turn risk on.

On the Asian side, the markets are seen declining on Wednesday following lackluster performance on Wall Street overnight. China’s Shanghai Composite has shed 0.69 per cent and the Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is down by 0.66 per cent, the Nikkei in Japan has lost 0.46 per cent.  

Back home, equity benchmark indices extended their upmove for the fourth straight session in a row on Tuesday. Markets traded in a narrow range throughout the day, only to pick up some momentum in the latter half of the session and closed at fresh record levels. Nifty settled at 12,362, up by 0.27 per cent and BSE Sensex rose 0.22 per cent to close at 41,953. Amongst the broader markets, Nifty Mid-cap and Small-cap continued to outperform frontline indices and ended with gains of 0.71 and 0.81 per cent, respectively. On the sectoral front, Nifty Media and Nifty FMCG were the top gainers. On the other side, Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Bank were the top losers.

In overnight developments, US stocks lacked clear direction throughout the day and ended the day on a mixed note on Tuesday. The Dow touched a record high but retreated back off its best levels to end the day with modest gains. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq slipped 23 points and the S&P 500 dropped 5 points. The market participants were reluctant to take any major positions ahead of expected signing of a ‘phase one’ trade deal between US and China. Meanwhile, markets in European region eked out modest gains.