Indian shares looked set for a mildly weak start on Monday, in line with Asian equities, as geopolitical concerns over the alleged murder of Saudi Arabian journalist Jamal Khashoggi and corporate earnings back home are likely to keep a lid on risk appetite.
At 07:15 AM, SGX Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50's trend in India, was down 0.17 percent to 10,307, indicating a weak opening for the Indian market today.
Here is what you need to know before the stock market opens:
Rupee: The rupee on Friday closed at Rs 73.43 against the US dollar. Asia: Asian share markets fell anew on Monday as investors braced for the peak of the US earnings season while angst over Saudi Arabia, Italy and Brexit kept geopolitics front and centre. US: US stocks were slightly higher on Friday as strong earnings from major US companies such as Procter & Gamble helped brush aside growth risk concerns in Europe and political tensions related to Saudi Arabia. Oil: Oil prices were stable on Monday, supported by supply concerns ahead of the start of US sanctions against Iran’s crude exports, but held back by rising drilling activity in the United States.
Global economic growth: The outlook for global growth in 2019 has dimmed for the first time, according to Reuters polls of economists who said the US-China trade war and tightening financial conditions would trigger the next downturn. GST filing: The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on Sunday extended till October 25 the deadline for filing the GSTR-3B summary return of sales for September.
FPIs: Foreign investors have pulled out close to Rs 32,000 crore from the Indian capital markets in the first three weeks of this month due to the ongoing global trade tiff, rising crude prices and higher US treasury yields. This is much higher than the over Rs 21,000 crore net outflow seen in entire September. Earnings: The earnings season, so far, has been mixed. ICICI Bank, Asian Paints, Maruti Suzuki, HCL Technologies, Dr Reddy's Labs, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, Wipro, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Infratel, Bajaj Auto, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Yes Bank, UPL and ITC are among the big names which are going to announce earnings this week.
Euro and Pound: The euro and the British pound edged down against the dollar on Monday as investors awaited developments around Brexit as well as Italy’s budget plan which drew heavy criticism from the European Union. Market at close on Friday: Indian shares ended sharply lower on Friday, erasing last week’s gains in two sessions. The NSE Nifty50 is back in negative territory for the year-to-date, while the BSE Sensex is up less than 1 percent. The Nifty slipped 149 points to settle at 10,303.55 and the Sensex erased 464 points to close at 34,316. (With inputs from agencies)
First Published: Oct 22, 2018 7:46 AM IST
