Flat opening expected; China surges 3% after week-long holiday

Markets are likely to see a flat opening tracking losses in the Asian peers with China shares bucking the trend after it returns form a week-long holiday. However, a firm closing was witnessed on the Wall Street as investors await for the earnings season.

Back home, caution is likely to prevail on the bourses ahead of September earning season due to kick-off next week. FII stance and movement of oil prices and rupee are likely to dictate the trend on the bourses during the session.

STCOKS TO WATCH

Indian Oil Corporation will not enter into long-term price contracts with liquefied natural gas suppliers, drawing lessons from the fiasco where staterun Petronet LNG has been pushed to buy expensive LNG to honour an old contract but struggles to sell it further to consumers. 

 

Reliance Infrastructure has decided to exit the cement business by putting privately held Reliance Cements up for sale. 

Tata Steel, which will commission a 3 million tonne steel plant in Kalinganagar by December, plans to scale up its operations gradually. Also, Tata Steel said its subsidiary in the UK and the trustee of the British Steel Pension Scheme had concluded the triennial actuarial valuation of the scheme. 

HDFC Bank,has decided to roll out an aggressive brand campaign to strenghten its position as a digital bank.

Apollo Hospitals Group has decided tol raise up to Rs 1,000 crore via a rights issue and private equity investment to expand its hospital network and specialty clinics across the country in the next few months.

n a relief for US drug major Merck Sharp and Dohme (MSD), Delhi High Court on Wednesday restrained Indian firm Glenmark Pharmaceuticals from manufacturing and selling its anti-diabetes drugs Zita and Zita-Met, saying it has infringed patent of the American company.

YES Bank has tied up with MatchMove Pay, a Singapore-based mobile payment platform provider inorder to aunch its mobile wallet platform in India via YES

Cipla has firmed up its plan to manufacture and market respiratory products in Algeria in a joint venture partnership.

Four major banks -- SBI, Bank of Baroda, IDBI Bank and ICICI Bank -- are planning to take 53.63% equity stake in Chennai-based Consolidated Construction Consortium.

Man Industries (India) is likely to remain in focus after the company bagged orders worth Rs 700 crores.

GLOBAL STOCKS

Most of the asian stocks are trading lower bucking positive cues from Wall Street. However, Chinese equities are trading higher after mainland markets resume trading after a week-long holiday. Japan's Nikkei, Hong Kong's Kang Seng and Singapore's Straits Times are trading down between 0.5-0.8%.

The  US indices closed higher overnight helped by a recovery in health care stocks and gains in energy. The Dow Jones 
Europe stocks closIndustrial Average closed up 0.7%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite gained 0.8 and 0.9%, respectively. 

ed flat with auto stocks and miners outperforming after some recovery in oil prices. German Dax outperformed to close up 0.70% higher.