Weak opening on the cards

SGX Nifty:

Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could slide 126 points at the opening bell.

Global markets:

Overseas, Asian stocks are trading lower on Friday following overnight losses on Wall Street as a private survey showed Chinese manufacturing activity shrank in March.

The Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index came in at 48.1, below the 50-level that separates growth from contraction. That compared against the previous month's reading of 50.4. Friday's reading was also the lowest since February 2020.

Sentiment at Japan's large manufacturers soured in the three months to March, according to the Bank of Japan's quarterly tankan business sentiment survey. The headline index for large manufacturers' sentiment came in at 14, a decline from the previous quarter's reading of 17.

US stocks slumped on Thursday as concerns persisted about the continuing conflict in Ukraine and its inflationary effect on prices and the Federal Reserve's response.

Meanwhile, U.S. oil prices fell 7% to close just above $100 on Thursday as President Joe Biden announced the largest ever release from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve and called on oil companies to increase drilling to boost supply.

Domestic markets:

Back home, the benchmark indices ended with modest cuts on Thursday. The S&P BSE Sensex fell 115.48 points or 0.20% at 58,568.51. The Nifty 50 index lost 33.50 points or 0.19% at 17,464.75.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 3,088.73 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 1,145.28 crore in the Indian equity market on 31 March, provisional data showed.

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