India : Markets to open flat to positive in the wake of Asian cues basking in BOJ’s decision

Indian benchmark indices extended the grief of closing in the red territory for the fifth consecutive session on Tuesday as investors held back from taking any big bets on rising geopolitical concerns in Turkey, Germany and Switzerland. On the BSE sectoral space, Banking index remained the top laggard in the space and settled with over a per cent laceration followed by the PSU and Metal pockets, which went home with over half a per cent cuts. On the flipside, Information Technology and Consumer Durables stocks managed to go home on a cheerful note. Finally, the NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index – Nifty settled with modest losses of twenty one points, below the psychological 8100 levels; while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index – Sensex shed sixty six points and closed below the psychological 26350 mark.European markets finished higher on Tuesday with shares in France leading in the region. The CAC 40 is up 0.56 per cent; while London’s FTSE 100 is up 0.38 per cent; and Germany’s DAX is up 0.33 per cent.The U.S. stocks finished higher on Tuesday, led by a rally in bank stocks, though the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished just shy of psychologically important 20,000 level. Both the Dow and Nasdaq Composite Index closed at fresh all-time highs, with the S&P index falling just short of its own record. The S&P 500 gained 8.23 points to 2,270.76, led by financials and consumer discretionary stocks. The Dow climbed 90.95 points to 19,974.14. The Nasdaq gained 26.50 points to 5,483.94.   Asian stocks on Wednesday morning opened with gains, as the yen approached a 10-month low against the dollar following Bank of Japan’s Tuesday’s decision to keep monetary policy unchanged. The Shanghai Composite is trading 0.50 per cent higher followed by Hang Seng and Nikkei 225 which at present are trading higher by 0.47 and 0.27 per cent respectively.At 7:55 am, SGX Nifty Index has gained 0.07 per cent to 8,112, indicating a quiet start for Indian equities.