Markets to get a flat-to-positive start on mixed global cues

The Indian markets bounced back and posted decent gains in last session. Today, the start is likely to be flat-to-green on ECBs hint of additional stimulus and on some better than expected earnings, especially of Reliance Industries, India's second largest company by market value, which despite a profit decline in second quarter reported strong refining business performance and record petrochemicals segment earnings. But some cautiousness may creep in, as US Trade Representative Michael Froman underlining the need to improve the business environment in India in order to ensure greater investment inflow, has said that certain areas in the Indian economy like retail and financial services needed further opening up. Meanwhile, the government and the Reserve Bank of India have swung into action after the debit card data theft issue and RBI has directed banks to submit a report on the magnitude of the security breach at their ATM, while the finance ministry has asked for a detailed report from RBI and National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) about the debit card information breach. The telecom stocks will be buzzing, as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has held that tariff plans of Reliance Jio, which is offering a lifetime free voice calling service, are compliant to existing rules and not discriminatory. There will be lots of earnings announcements too to keep the markets in action.

The US markets made a modestly lower closing in the last session after showing a lackluster trade through the day, traders digested the European Central Bank's monetary policy decision to leave interest rates unchanged and confirmation that its monthly asset purchases of 80 billion euros are intended to run until the end of March 2017. The Asian markets have made a mixed start as corporate earnings in the region gave cause for caution and the euro sank to its weakest level since March.

Back home, a session after displaying consolidation, Indian benchmark indices ended higher on Thursday, on account of buying in frontline blue-chip stocks. Sentiments remained jubilant in the first half of trade amid firm cues from Asia and overnight gains on Wall Street, but investors started booking profits after weak opening in European counterparts. Investors got some confidence with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that India was the fastest growing economy and that it can play a major role in providing strength to global economy that is facing slowdown.  However, gains remained capped as the GST Council’s third round of deliberations ended without a decision on the rates structure after most States objected to a proposal to levy an additional cess on demerit goods.  The GST Council will meet again on November 3-4 to take decision on the Goods and Services Tax rates, which will have four slabs. Finance minister Arun Jaitley however sounded confident about rolling out the proposed goods and services tax from next April even after a meeting between him and state finance ministers failed to break a deadlock on rates. Meanwhile, Moody's Investors Service has said that PPP model in India's infrastructure needs to be developed further to attract more private investment in the sector that would help propel growth. While the country's PPP mechanism has seen reasonable success in some sectors over the last 20 years, the level of activity has been low in the last four fiscal years due to challenges. On the global front, Asian markets ended mostly in green on Thursday, while European markets traded mixed. Back home, the local benchmarks got off to a positive start in the early trade as investors were largely influenced by the supportive leads from Wall Street overnight and a fairly steady trend in Asian markets.  Thereafter, the key indices soon capitalized on the momentum and touched intraday highs in late morning session but they failed to hold onto the highs and receded to lows in noon trades post weak European market opening. Yet, final hour buying ensured that the key indices do not shut shops way below the intraday highs. Finally, the BSE Sensex gained by 145.47 points or 0.52% to 28129.84, while the CNX Nifty rose 40.30 points or 0.47% to 8,699.40.