India : Markets may open positive, further to be influenced by CPI data and earnings outcome

Indian benchmark indices started the last session of the week on a positive note, but thereafter indices traded in a tight range for most part of the session and ended with moderate gains. In the BSE sectoral space, the IT counter remained the top gainer in the space with over two per cent gains, followed by the beaten down Technology pocket which surged close to two per cent. On the flipside, Oil & Gas counter languished at the bottom of the table with cuts of over half a per cent; while FMCG, Auto and PSU sectors settled with moderate cuts of around half a per cent. The NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index Nifty, added fifteen points to settle above the crucial 8,750 support level; while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive index or Sensex gained around five points and ended above the psychological 28,300 mark.The majority of the European markets ended Friday’s session with modest gains, extending their gains from the previous three sessions. Earnings remained in focus at the end of the trading week, but sentiments also received a boost from positive data out of both the U.K. and the China. The DAX of Germany climbed 0.21 per cent and the CAC 40 of France rose 0.04 per cent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. gained 0.40 per cent.The U.S. stock market extended gains to close at a fresh record high on Friday as investors cheered President, Donald Trump’s promise to introduce tax reforms in the next few weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 98 points, the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 118 points and the S&P 500 climbed 8 points.Asian stocks are trading in positive territory on Monday, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged over 100 points, while Hang Seng gained 70 points and Shanghai Composite climbed 14 points.  At 7:51 am, SGX Nifty index gained 39.50 points to 8,847.50, indicating a positive start for Indian equities. The government will release the data on Consumer Price Inflation for January 2017 on Monday after market hours. On the earnings front, companies such as Petronet LNG, Hindalco Industries, Reliance Infra, Nalco and Motherson Sumi are some of the major companies scheduled to post their quarterly results on Monday.