Stable start likely tracking positive cues from Asian peers

We expect a stable start for the Indian markets as cues from Asian peers are supportive. The trend on SGX Nifty indicate Nifty to open with an uptick of 0.25 per cent at 10,888. Some of the key names like Infosys and Karnataka Bank will announce their quarterly earnings today. Additionally, India’s industrial production data for November will be out today.  
  
Asian markets are seen advancing on the final trading session of the week tracking strong close on the Wall Street overnight, where major indices extended their upmove for the fifth straight session. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index has surged 0.71 per cent, followed by China’s Shanghai Composite index and the Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which have gained about 0.24 per cent and 0.16 per cent, respectively.  
  
Back home, after starting the session on a cautious note, the benchmark indices traded sideways with negative bias for a major part of the trading session. In the second half of trading session, the indices extended their losses to snap their four-day winning streak on Thursday. Nifty ended the session down by 0.31 per cent at 10,822 and the BSE Sensex lost 0.29 per cent to close at 36,107. The broader indices put up a better performance, with Nifty Mid-cap and Small-cap ending with gains of 0.40 per cent each. Most of the sectoral indices traded in tandem with the benchmark indices and settled marginally lower, with Nifty Private Bank being the top loser and Nifty Pharma being the top gainer. 
  
The US stocks extended their jubilant run for the fifth straight session on Thursday after the US Federal Reserve Chairman Powell stated that the Fed would be ‘patient’ and would see how the economic backdrop unfolds when determining the policy. He claimed that the Fed balance sheet will be ‘substantially smaller’ in future. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed with a gain of 0.51 per cent at 24,002, the S&P 500 index rose 0.45 per cent to 2,597 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.42 per cent to end at 6,957.   
  
Majority of the European markets eked out modest gains on Thursday. The DAX of Germany closed with a gain of 0.26 per cent, the CAC of France dipped 0.16 per cent and the FTSE 100 of the UK advanced 0.52 per cent.