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Benchmark indices are likely to see a negative start owing to weak global cues. Markets will be reacting to December quarter GDP data which came below expectations post market hours on Friday. The Nifty is likely to retest the levels of 6,250 in today’s trades.
Also, stock traders are gearing up for the start of a pre-election rally in the days ahead, as hopes of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government coming to power heighten.
At 0815 hrs, the SGX Nifty was down eight points at 6,272.
Meanwhile, increasing tensions over Ukraine and weak official purchasing managers' index (PMI) figures from China dragged most Asian markets lower.
China's factory activity shrank again in February as output and new orders fell, a private survey found on Monday, reinforcing concerns of a slowdown in the world's second largest economy. The final Markit/HSBC manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to a seven-month low of 48.5 in February, the third straight monthly decline, from January's 49.5. The figure was in line with the 48.3 reported in the preliminary version of the PMI released on Feb 20.
Nikkei was down nearly 2% along with Hang Seng, Shanghai Composite and Straits Times 0.1-0.8%.
Back home, on the macro level, HSBC Markit Manufacturing PMI for February is expected today. Also, auto companies will be reporting their sales volume data.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have been net buyers of equities so far this year despite the Fed tapering. Indian markets have largely been resilient to QE3 tapering and have performed relatively better compared to the other emerging markets.
FIIs so far this year, have pumped in Rs 2,436 crore including provisional data from the exchanges for Friday. Of this, about Rs 1,930 crore has come in the last week alone. Domestic institutions, on the contrary, have net-sold Rs 1,168 crore since January. Last week, they were net-sellers at Rs 777 crore. Benchmark indices, however, have been flat during the period, declining less than 0.5 per cent.
