Pre-market: Weak trend seen tracking subdued overseas cues

Weak opening seen tracking subuded Asian cues and overnight losses in US stocks

Markets are likely to open lower on Thursday, tracking subuded Asian cues and overnight losses in US stocks.

At 8:25AM, the SGX Nifty was down 38 points at 6,129.  

Most Asian markets except for China were trading lower tracking overnight losses in US stocks. The Nikkei extended losses and was down 1.7%, Hang Seng slipped 1.4% while Straits Times was trading flat with positive bias. China's benchmark share index, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.1%.

Shares on Wall Street ended lower on Wednesday amid selling in late trades after the minutes of the last Fed meet suggested that the central bank would continue trimming its monetary stimulus measures. Facebook shares ended lower on talk that it plans to acquire mobile-messaging WhatsApp for $16 billion.

The Dow Jones ended down 0.6% at 16,040, the S&P 500 lost 0.7% to close at 1,829 and the

tech-laden Nasdaq ended a 8-day winning streak to end down 0.8% at 4,238.

Stocks in Europe ended mixed on Wednesday with pipe makers Tenarec and Vallourec after the US tariff ruling on imports while Carlsberg and Lafarge ended with gains.

The DAX ended down 0.1% at 9,653 and CAC-40 gained 0.2% to close at 4,341 and the FTSE-100

ended up 1% at 6,797.


Stocks in Focus

Reliance Industries may see some action on report that the company is in talks with four or five export credit agencies (ECA) to raise over $1 billion (Rs 6,220 crore) in the next four months.

Bharti Airtel, India's biggest mobile service company, has become the first in the country to cross 200 million subscribers. The telecom major said in a statement said that it "has crossed the 200 million mobile subscriber mark in India, further consolidating its leadership position in the world's second-largest mobile market."

Esab India will see some pressure after the company reported a 33% drop in net profit to Rs 7.06 crore for the quarter ended December 2013 from Rs 10.57 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal.

CARE Ratings will be in action after the bidding for acquiring partial stake in the company begins on February 22. Institutions which hold 63.7% stake in the company plans to divest part of their stake holdings

MCX will be in action on talk that the company plans to divest stake in few of the ventures. Financial Technologies will also be in action today.

BHEL could be under pressure on media reports that the govt plans to sell 5% through a block deal.

Geodesic may be under pressure amid default on Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds. Geodesic Ltd has informed BSE that the London Court has given a Summary Judgment in the case filed by the Bondholders through their Trustees, Citibank N.A., London (Citibank).