BENGALURU (Reuters) – Indian stocks were poised to open lower on Wednesday, on weak economic data from the U.S., which hinted at rising fears of recession, and weak growth outlook from companies.
India’s NSE stock futures listed on the Singapore exchange were down 0.19% at 18,099.50, as of 07:37 a.m. IST.
The S&P Global’s Flash Composite Output index in the U.S. rose to 46.6 in December, official data showed. A reading below 50 indicates contraction in business activity, and heightens the possibility of a near-term recession in the world’s largest economy.
Wall Street equities ended mostly lower with S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite logging losses while Dow Jones Industrial Average settled with 0.3% gains. Most Asian equities were closed on Wednesday. [MKTS/GLOB]
Crude oil prices slipped below $87 per barrel on concerns about a global economic slowdown. The slide in crude prices could cap losses in domestic equities, as crude constitutes the bulk of the import bill for oil-importing countries like India.
On the domestic front, investors await corporate earnings from several companies including Nifty 50 constituents Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Dr. Reddy’s and Cipla.
Foreign institutional investors sold 7.61 billion rupees ($93.24 million) worth of shares on a net basis on Tuesday while domestic institutional investors bought a net 11.45 billion rupees worth of equities.
STOCKS TO WATCH
** Bharti Airtel: Co raises basic tariffs by nearly 57% to 155 rupees in seven regions.
** TVS Motor: Co beats third-quarter profit estimates on price increases.
** Nazara Technologies: Co reports rise in consolidated net profit in Q3.
** Macrotech Developers: Co reports rise in consolidated net profit in third quarter on deferred tax gain.
** Indus Towers: Co logs losses in the December quarter on continued shortfall in collections from one of its major customers.
** United Spirits: Co reports fall in net profit in third quarter on slide in sales and rise in expenses.
($1 = 81.6130 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
