MUMBAI: The selling pressure returned to Indian markets on Monday after gains on the Muhurat trading day, as both indices opened lower. The Nifty 50 index opened with a marginal gain of 11 points, or 0.05 per cent, at 24,315.75 points, while the BSE Sensex index declined by 10 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 79,713 points. Both indices declined further in early trade.
Experts noted that this week is expected to be very volatile for stock markets globally due to various factors, and investors are advised to take cautious steps.
Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, said, “Four important numbers for this week, markets brace for the outcome of the US Presidential election on Tuesday, November 5. The second event is the Fed meets on Wednesday and Thursday, with a 25 basis points (0.25 pc) rate cut expected. Third, in a boost to oil prices, the OPEC+ alliance of oil producers will not be raising oil production by the previously announced daily levels in view of slow demand”.
He further added, “Fourth, Warren Buffett has meantime increased his cash hoard at Berkshire to a record $325 billion and has cut back share buybacks for now, in a signal to the markets that the most successful investor in history is expecting lower US markets ahead. In such an event heavy week, volatility will be much higher than usual. Waiting on the sidelines is a good strategy in such times”.
In the sectoral indices on the National Stock Exchange, the Nifty IT index declined by 0.57 per cent, while other indices gained during the opening session.
In the Nifty 50 stock list, only 9 shares opened with gains, while the other 41 stocks declined. Mahindra & Mahindra emerged as the top gainer of the day with a surge of 3 per cent, followed by Cipla, Tech Mahindra, and HCL Tech. The top losers included Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto, Infosys, and Adani Ports.
In quarterly results announcements today, Indian Railway Finance Corp, IRCTC, Exide Industries, Raymond, Sundaram Finance, ABB India, and others are set to announce their second-quarter results for FY2025.
In other Asian markets, South Korea’s KOSPI index led in gains with a surge of 1.49 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei was closed on Monday for a cultural holiday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up marginally by 0.16 percent. Taiwan’s Taiwan Weighted also gained 0.23 per cent. (ANI)