Pre market: Cautious opening on cards

The Indian markets are expected to trade on a cautious note on the back of global cues and the F&O expiry for the January series due today. Overnight, the Dow Jones industrial average shed 0.29 per cent to 12,671.74, while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 0.12 per cent at 1,314.36.

Japan's Nikkei average opened at a fresh three-month high on Wednesday after earnings from US-based technology giant Apple came in above expectations. The benchmark Nikkei advanced 0.7 per cent to 8,843.44, while the broader Topix gained 0.6 per cent to 761.86. The rise comes despite the first annual trade deficit in 2011 for over 30 years.

Back home, as per the daily and weekly charts, the Nifty is likely to face stiff resistance around 5,215-5,255, technical analysts suggest. At 720 am Indian Standard Time, the SGX Nifty was trading at 5173 levels, up 40 points.

Among individual stocks, Grasim could be in focus today on reporting a 33 per cent rise in its net profit at 669 crore for the quarter ended December 2011.

JSW Steel has finalised 2,140-crore investment plan in its subsidiary JSW Ispat Steel to set up a coke oven, a pellet plant and a cold rolling mill. This could bring the stock in limelight today.

Cairn India could be in focus today on reporting a 12 per cent rise in net profit for the quarter ended December 2011, on back of higher crude oil price.

Watch out for Andhra Cements as Jaypee Development Corporation will launch an open offer for acquisition of 7.63 crore shares of the company at Rs 12 apiece today.

Also keep a tab on Bank of Baroda, Sterlite Technologies, Patni Computer and Sesa Goa as they announce their respective December quarter results today.