Domestic stock markets are likely to start Wednesday's session on a sluggish note amid weakness in Asian equities. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) Nifty futures - an early indicator of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty index - moved within a range of 9,019.25-9,074.25, fluctuating between gains and losses compared to its previous close of 9,048. At 8:04 am, the SGX Nifty futures were down 13.50 points - or 0.15 per cent - at 9,034.50, ahead of the opening of Indian markets.
Asian shares shed some of their recent gains on Wednesday as investor concerns about rising tensions between the United States and China tempered optimism about a re-opening of the world economy.
The Nikkei share average slipped 0.1 per cent, unwinding some of the gains made on Tuesday when it climbed to their highest in nearly 12 weeks. Australia's ASX 200 lost 0.9 per cent in early trade and South Korea's KOSPI fell 0.2 per cent.
US stocks closed higher on Tuesday on optimism about the development of coronavirus vaccines and a revival of business activity, but the S&P 500 failed to hold above the key psychological level of 3,000 points.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.17 per cent, S&P 500 gained 1.23 per cent and Nasdaq Composite added 0.17 per cent.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell on Wednesday on revived concerns over how quickly fuel demand will recover even as coronavirus lockdowns begin to ease in many countries, while U.S.-China tensions added to negative sentiment.
Brent crude futures fell 21 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $35.96 by 0120 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 31 cents, or 0.9 per cent, at $34.04 a barrel.
The markets had ended marginally lower on Monday, after a choppy session of trade, with the Sensex losing 0.21 per cent and Nifty shedding 0.1 per cent.
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