Global Cues Guiding Nifty’s Opening: Dow Futures, Asian Trade, Oil Dips

By Malvika Gurung

Investing.com -- The Nifty 50 Futures listed on the Singapore-based Exchange SGX, an early indicator for Nifty50 , traded 0.12% or 21 points lower at 8:31 am on Friday, indicating a muted-to-lower opening on Dalal Street. 

Further, the Dow Jones Futures and Nasdaq 100 Futures traded flat, rising upto 0.05% each.

Major indices in the US rose on Thursday, after reversing an early rally followed by sinking to red and regaining positive territory before the session ended on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s reassurance that necessary steps will be taken to safeguard Americans’ deposits.

"The market as a whole is telling you that there are a lot of different ways to interpret all the things people are saying,” said Thomas Martin of GLOBALT Investments.

Nasdaq Composite surged 1.01%, Dow Jones gained 0.23% and S&P 500 rose 0.3%. 

Asian markets sank on Friday despite Wall Street ending the overnight session on a positive note, as investors remained concerned about the banking crisis and weighed the remarks made by Yellen.

Japan’s CPI inflation dipped from over 40-year highs in February, rising 3.1% YoY and falling swiftly from 4.2% in January. 

At 8:26 am, South Korea’s KOSPI declined 0.67%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.26%, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.76%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 0.6%, and Australia's ASX 200 lost 0.26%.

Oil prices declined on Friday, following the US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm’s congressional hearing that it would be difficult to immediately refill the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve. 

Brent crude dipped to $75.78/barrel and WTI Futures fell to $ 69.8 a barrel. Natural Gas Futures rose 0.51%.