Pre market: Weak opening on cards

The markets are likely to start the day off in the red on the back of negative global cues. The SGX Nifty was down 45 points at 5,660 at 700 am Indian Standard Time.

For the near term, 5,750 remains a major hurdle for the index. On the downside, the index can test 5,600-odd levels today..

On Wednesday in the US markets, stocks slid with declines accelerating after President Barack Obama set up a drawn-out fight over the fiscal cliff when he stuck to his pledge to raise taxes on the wealthy, and as violence increased in the Middle East.

With talks over solving the U.S. "fiscal cliff" in early stages, investors reacted to the uncertainty by shedding positions.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 185 points, or 1.45 percent, to 12,571 at the close. The S&P 500 dropped 19 points, or 1.39 percent, to 1,355. The Nasdaq Composite lost 37 points, or 1.29 percent, to 2,847.

In Europe, anti-austerity protests broke out as labor unions organized walkouts in Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy leading CAC, DAX and FTSE to close lower by 1 percent each.

Following suite, the Asian markets began largely in the red. Nikkei and  Shanghai Composite up 1.1% and 0.4% were the notable exceptions. Nikkei gained  with banks aided by earnings and a weaker yen helping exporters.

STOCKS TO WATCH

Apollo Hospitals may sees some action on its planning to invest around Rs 2,000 crore to add 2,500 beds between 2013 and 2015.

DLF will be in spotlight on its plans to offload Aman Hotel, identified among the group’s non-core assets, in the next few weeks.

Mahindra & Mahindra may see some uptick as the company chairman and managing director Anand Mahindra stated that M&M would not hesitate to exit its loss-making businesses if customers do not accept the products.