Indian indices are likely to start the week on a negative note on Monday as the Russia-Ukraine crisis continued to be in focus. At 8:30 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 368 points or 2 percent higher at 16,552, indicating a negative start for the Indian markets.
On Friday, the Sensex surged 1,329 points to settle at 55,858, while the Nifty50 jumped 410 points to end at 16,658.
Let's take a look at some key market cues before the market opens today:
US Markets
S&P 500 futures decline over 2 percent in early hours on Monday, suggesting a gap-down opening ahead on Wall Street. On Friday, the three main US indices the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.5-2.5 percent each tracking gains across global markets as investors welcomed talk of renewed diplomacy after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 834.92 points, or 2.51 percent, to 34,058.75, the S&P 500 gained 95.95 points, or 2.24 percent, to 4,384.65 and the Nasdaq Composite added 221.04 points, or 1.64 percent, to 13,694.62.
Asian Markets
Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Monday as investors monitor the Russia-Ukraine crisis and related sanctions. Japan’s Nikkei 225 shed 0.28 percent, while the Topix was almost flat. In South Korea, the Kospi also erased losses to rise 0.14 percent. MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan down 0.4 percent at the last count.
Oil
Crude oil jumped after Western nations imposed new sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, including blocking some banks from the SWIFT international payments system. The ramp-up in tensions heightened fears that oil supplies from the world's second-largest producer could be disrupted, sending Brent crude futures up $4.21 or 4.3 percent at $102.14. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up $4.58 or 5.0 percent at $96.17 a barrel.
SGX Nifty
At 8:30 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 368 points or 2 percent higher at 16,552, indicating a negative start for the Indian markets.
Rupee
The rupee appreciated by 27 paise to close at 75.33 against the US dollar on Friday in line with regional currencies, following a retreat in crude oil prices and a rebound in domestic equities.
Gold
Gold prices rose more than 1 percent on Monday and were set for their best monthly gain in nine after Western countries slapped fresh sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin put his country's nuclear deterrent on high alert.
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
The United States and NATO on Sunday condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s order to put his nuclear forces on high alert as dangerous and unacceptable, while the White House said it has not ruled out imposing new sanctions on Russia’s energy sector. Ukraine's Interior Ministry said 352 Ukrainian civilians have been killed during Russia's invasion, including 14 children. It said an additional 1,684 people, including 116 children, have been wounded.
Stocks in News
Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, IndusInd Bank, Fortis, Rain Industries are a few stocks that will be in news today.
FII/DII activity
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold Indian equities worth ₹4,470.7 crore on Friday, according to provisional exchange data. However, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) made net purchases of ₹4,318.2 crore.