Sensex, Nifty Seen Opening Up As Middle East Tensions Ease

Indian shares are likely to open higher on Monday as investors keep a close eye on the Middle East conflict and oil price movements.

Geopolitical tensions eased somewhat as Israel and Iran played down the risks of an escalation in hostilities.

Asian markets were broadly lower this morning, the dollar was little changed, gold dipped, and oil prices traded down about 1 percent amid receding fears of an escalation in the Middle East conflict.

However, rate concerns linger after another Federal Reserve official signaled a longer timeline for interest rate cuts.

The earnings season will continue to remain in focus, with prominent companies including Bajaj Finance, HCL Technologies, Maruti Suzuki India, Nestle India, Reliance Industries and Tech Mahindra due to report their financial results this week.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank reported a 37 percent jump in its Q4 net profit while Wipro’s quarterly profit fell 8 percent year-on-year.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday, with tech stocks plummeting as Netflix provided disappointing revenue guidance.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 2.1 percent and the S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent to extend losses for the sixth straight session while the Dow rose 0.6 percent, led by financials and consumer staple stocks.

European stocks also ended mixed on Friday after Israel’s apparently small retaliatory strike on Iran.

The pan European STOXX 600 ended flat with a negative bias. The German DAX dipped 0.6 percent and France’s CAC 40 finished marginally lower while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.2 percent.