India : Markets likely to open flat to positive; ECB outcome’s hangover may prevail

Indian markets on Thursday got off to a gap-up opening following supportive leads from Asian markets as sentiments in the region got bolstered after Wall Street strode to new records. The markets carried forward the cheerful momentum and kept oscillating in a narrow range throughout the morning session. Second half of the session saw the key gauges capitalise on the momentum further and spurt to highest levels in the last hour. Finally the NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index, Nifty registered triple digit gains to settle just below the crucial 8,250 support level; while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index – Sensex amassed whopping over four hundred points and closed below the psychological 26,700 mark.European shares rose to their highest in eleven months on Thursday as the European Central Bank’s unexpected decision to cut its monthly asset purchases helped banks extend their rally.  The DAX closed higher by 1.72 per cent while London’s FTSE 100 was up by 0.42 per cent and France’s CAC 40 was up by 0.86 per cent.U.S stocks closed at record levels on Thursday after the European Central Bank held its key rates steady but said it would taper its asset-purchase plan in April, while leaving the door open for an extension of its economic stimulus program “if necessary”. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 65.19 at a record 19,614.81; while the Nasdaq Composite closed at a record 5,417.36, a gain of 23.59 points. The S&P 500 index finished up 4.84 points at  a record 2,246.19.Asian stocks are trading mixed with Nikkei 225 trading higher by 0.90 per cent at 18,936.16. Shanghai Composite is trading higher by 0.31 per cent to 3,225.40, while Hang Seng is trading in negative territory with losses of 0.46 per cent at 22,756.17.At 7:55 am, SGX Nifty Index rose 0.59 per cent at 8,287.50, indicating a positive start for Indian equities.