Positive start likely despite mixed cues from Asian peers

Today, the start of the fresh week is likely to be cheerful one, despite the Asian markets trading on a mixed note. Positive trends in the SGX Nifty Index Future which was trading at 10,103, up by 56 points, also indicated a positive start for the local bourses. On the earnings front, big names like Bharat Petroleum Corporation, HDFC Asset Management Company, Tata Power, Century Textiles and Industries, Colgate Palmolive, LIC Housing Finance, Union Bank of India, will release their results today.  
  
At the week’s opening on Monday, the Asian market are having no clear direction. China’s Shanghai Composite index has slipped about 0.91 per cent, while Japanese stock market Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng are trading almost unchanged.  
  
Back home, key benchmark indices dropped sharply on the final trading session of the week as weak global cues coupled with prevailing liquidity crunch, remained key dampening factors. The Nifty 50 index lost 95 points to settle at 10,030, its lowest level since March 23, 2018, and the BSE Sensex plummeted 341 points to end at 33,349. The broader markets showed some resilience as compared to the frontline indices, with the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap shedding 0.12 and 0.63 per cent, respectively. Among sectoral indices, all indices ended in the red, with Nifty Private Bank and Nifty IT being the top losers. 
  
The US stocks moved sharply lower, but regained some ground after an early sell-off and still ended the day significantly lower. At the close of the session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down by 296 points, the S&P 500 tumbled 47 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq nosedived 151 points. In economic the news, a report from the commerce department showed the nation’s economy in terms of GDP expanded at an annualised rate of 3.5 per cent during the third quarter and this was a bit better than expected. The US corporate results overshadowed a robust US GDP figure.
  
The European equities finished solidly lower on Friday tracking sharp decline on the Wall Street as disappointing results from the key tech stocks sparked the sell-off. The DAX of Germany lost 0.94 per cent, the CAC of France fell 1.29 per cent and UK’s FTSE 100 sank 1.40 per cent.