Indices may open slightly lower

SGX Nifty:

Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could fall 8 points at the opening bell.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 8 said a number of states have crossed the peak of the pandemic's first wave. The need is to combat the health crisis on "war footing", he said in a review meeting held virtually with the chief ministers of states and union territories. The country is witnessing an unprecedented growth in new infections, Modi said, adding that the situation is a "big cause of worry" before the nation. A "vaccine utsav" should be observed from April 11 to April 14 to promote the usage of vaccine among the eligible section of the population, Modi told the chief ministers.

Global markets:

Overseas, Asian stocks are trading mostly lower on Friday after the S&P 500 on Wall Street cruised to yet another record closing high overnight.

In US, the S&P 500 rose to another record high on Thursday amid a strong rally in major technology stocks.

Federal Reverse chairman Jerome Powell signaled on Thursday that the economic rebound from the pandemic still has room to go as the recovery thus far hasn't been well-rounded. Powell also repeated that inflation is not expected to be serious even though near-term price pressures are likely.

Data showed an unexpected rise in the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits. A total of 744,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the first time during the week ended April 3, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Domestic markets:

Back home, the domestic equity benchmarks ended with minor gains on Thursday, rising for the third straight session. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 84.45 points or 0.17% to 49,746.21. The Nifty 50 index rallied 54.75 points or 0.37% to 14,873.80.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 110.85 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 552.78 crore in the Indian equity market on 8 April, provisional data showed.

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