Sensex, Nifty Likely To Have A Cautious Start

The domestic stock markets are likely to open lower this morning, going by early indications from SGX Nifty futures trading. Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a negative start for the broader index in India, with a loss of 69 points or 0.50 percent. At 7:30 am, the Nifty futures were trading at 13,713, lower by 369 points or 0.5 per cent on the Singapore Stock Exchange.

Asian stocks traded sideways in Asia on Monday as investors gave a cautious welcome to news a deal had been struck on a long-awaited U.S. stimulus bill, though "difficult" Brexit talks dragged on with no agreement in sight.

US stocks ended lower on Friday, pulled down by uncertainty around a coronavirus stimulus deal, while Tesla shares jumped in heavy trading in anticipation of their addition to the S&P 500 next week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.41 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 0.35 per cent and Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.07 per cent.

Meanwhile, oil prices slid in early trade on Monday as a fast-spreading new coronavirus strain in the United Kingdom raised concerns that tighter restrictions there and in other European countries could stall a recovery in the global economy and its need for fuel.

On Friday, the benchmark indices had ended marginally higher; the Sensex was up 70.35 points or 0.15 per cent at 46,960.69 and Nifty settled higher by 19.80 points or 0.14 per cent at 13,760.50.