Tepid start likely amid lacklustre cues from Asian peers

The Indian markets are expected to open the session on a subdued note as cues from Asian peers are tepid. After halting its three-day winning streak, the domestic markets may get some encouragement from the IIP data which was released after markets hours. The IIP growth for April 2019 came in relatively healthier at 3.4 per cent, which was a relief after the negative IIP growth seen in the month of March 2019. Meanwhile, the retail inflation crossed the 3 per cent mark and touched 7-month high of 3.05 per cent. At the time of writing, the SGX Nifty was down by 10 points at 11,916 level.

A majority of the Asian markets are trading in the red on Thursday following a negative close on the Wall Street. The Japanese stock index Nikkei 225 has edged lower 0.35 per cent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has shed 0.69 per cent.  

Back home, equity benchmark indices snapped their three day’s winning streak on Wednesday and ended the day with a cut of around half a per cent. After a cautious start, the indices traded in the negative terrain throughput the session. However, some losses got trimmed as buying interest emerged at the fag end. The Nifty closed at 11,906, down by 0.50 per cent, and the BSE Sensex slipped 0.48 per cent to close at 39,757. Among the broader market indices, both Nifty Midcap and Smallcap followed the frontline gauges' performance and ended down by 0.79 per cent and 0.24 per cent, respectively. All the sectoral indices ended in the red on the NSE, except Metal and FMCG. The top losers among the sectoral indices were Nifty Realty and Nifty Auto.

On the Wall Street, stocks traded lower and remained in the negative territory throughout the session. While investors were pleased with Fed rate cut expectations and the aborted tariffs on Mexican goods, they are still concerned that the tense US-China trade relations could cause additional economic and corporate challenges. In the economic news, the Consumer Price Index rose 0.1 per cent during the month of May. In the end, the Dow dipped 0.2 per cent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 0.4 per cent and the S&P 500 declined 0.2 per cent.

The European markets ended in the negative terrain on Wednesday as the trade tensions between the US and China remained elevated. France’s CAC 40 index ended down by 0.62 per cent, Germany’s DAX lost 0.33 per cent and UK’s FTSE 100 dropped 0.42 per cent.