Markets set to open higher

Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could rise 48 points at the opening bell.

Overseas, most Asian stocks were trading higher on Friday as investors clutched at hopes China could contain the coronavirus, even as headlines spoke of more cases and more deaths. Supporting sentiment were surveys showing Chinese manufacturing activity held steady in January while services actually firmed.

In US, stocks closed higher on Thursday, as investors decided to look past fears about the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic and focus on a spate of positive earnings reports.

On economic front, Thursday's data confirmed the Federal Reserve's view that the US expansion was continuing apace. Fourth-quarter gross domestic product grew at a 2.1% annualized pace, matching the 2.1% read in the third quarter, after receiving a significant boost from a temporary decline in imports. US initial jobless claims fell by 7,000 to 216,000 in the week of 25 January.

Back home, the market corrected sharply on Thursday amid weak global cues triggered by rising death toll from coronavirus spreading in China. Meanwhile, India on Thursday reported its first case of the novel coronavirus in Kerala. Domestic benchmarks were volatile due to monthly expiry of the January series of derivatives contracts. The barometer BSE S&P Sensex fell 284.84 points or 0.69% to 40,913.82. The Nifty 50 index lost 93.70 points or 0.77% to 12,035.80.

The trading activity on that day showed that the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 960.28 crore yesterday, 30 January 2020, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 292.35 crore, yesterday, 30 January 2020, as per provisional data.

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