India : Markets may open fairly positive; exit polls satisfactory

Indian benchmark indices after getting off to a weak start, traded below the neutral line for the most part of the trading session. However, buying in the final hour of trade helped indices to settle in positive territory. Towards the end, the NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index, Nifty, added single digit gains to settle above the crucial 8900 support level; while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive index or Sensex gained around twenty-seven points, and ended above the psychological 28900 mark.Majority of the European markets ended Thursday’s session with modest gains. Initially markets were under pressure, but later on they staged a comeback following some comments from ECB President, Mario Draghi, and the positive opening on Wall Street. The DAX of Germany climbed 0.09 per cent and the CAC 40 of France rose 0.42 per cent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. declined 0.27 per cent.U.S. benchmark indices ended their three-session losing streak on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 2 points, the S&P 500 index gained 2 points and Nasdaq Composite index finished up by 1 point.Asian stocks are trading higher on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.31 per cent. The Hang Seng gained 0.17 per cent and Shanghai Composite is trading flat.At 8:01 am, SGX Nifty index rose 26 points at 8981, indicating a positive start for Indian equities on the back of exit polls that predicted BJP will be ahead in three out of the five states.