Opening Bell : Markets likely to make cautious start amid mixed global cues
Indian equity markets are likely to make a cautious start on Friday amid mixed global cues. Traders are likely to adopt a wait-and-watch approach ahead of the release of India’s fiscal deficit data. Additionally, some cautiousness may come from foreign institutional investors (FIIs), who were net sellers of shares worth Rs 3,077.59 crore.
Some of the key factors to be watched:
Engineering goods exports grow in September: Engineering Exports Promotion Council (EEPC) India has said that India's engineering goods exports maintained a growth trajectory for the fourth consecutive month in September, with a 2.93 per cent rise year-on-year to $10.11 billion.
Finance Minister embarks on 4-day official visit to Bhutan: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has embarked on a four-day official visit to Bhutan to further strengthen the partnership with the neighbouring country.
India, Sri Lanka holds first JWG meeting on Agriculture: India and Sri Lanka held the first Joint Working Group (JWG) meeting on Agriculture. In this meeting, the ministries both sides discussed collaboration in key areas including farm mechanization, organic and natural farming, seed sector development and agri-entrepreneurship.
Sebi announces implementation timeline for derivatives on Bankex, BankNifty, FinNifty: Markets regulator Sebi has came out with guidelines for stock exchanges to implement eligibility criteria for derivatives on non-benchmark indices such as Bankex, FinNifty and BankNifty.
Electricity Bill aimed at strengthening power distribution sector: The government has released a document on the Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2025, stating the move will strengthen the power distribution sector through financial discipline, healthy competition, and enhanced efficiency.
On the global front: The US markets ended in red on Thursday amid a negative reaction to earnings news from tech giants Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT). Asian markets are trading mixed on Thursday, as traders took note of easing tensions between US and China.
Back home, Indian equity benchmarks ended significantly lower on Thursday tracking weak global cues after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates as expected but hinted that it could be the final cut of 2025. Markets started the session in red amid foreign fund outflows. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,540.16 crore on Wednesday. As day progressed, markets extended their losses and finally Sensex took hit of over 592 points, while Nifty settled below 25,900 mark. Broad-based selling witnessed on the exchanges, where Pharma, Telecom and TECK counters were leading the losers. Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 592.67 points or 0.70% to 84,404.46 and the CNX Nifty was down by 176.05 points or 0.68% to 25,877.85.
Some of the important factors in trade:
GDP likely to touch 7% in FY26: Traders overlooked Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran’s statement that the Indian economy responded quite satisfactorily to global headwinds and he also exuded confidence that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of India is likely to touch 7 per cent in FY26.
Early conclusion of India-EU FTA can make big difference: Traders failed to take any sense of relief with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s statement that an early conclusion of the proposed free trade agreement between India and the European Union can make a ‘big difference’ in terms of stabilising the global economy and strengthening democratic forces.
Goyal to visit New Zealand next week for trade pact talks: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said he will visit New Zealand next week to hold discussions on the proposed free trade agreement between the two countries. The proposed FTA is expected to further boost trade flows, promote investment linkages, strengthen supply chain resilience, and create a predictable framework for businesses in both countries.
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