10 things you need to know before the opening bell

SUMMARY

Indian shares are set to open lower on Thursday, tracking weakness in Asian stocks, as US recession concerns are likely to weigh on investor sentiment. At 07:16 AM, the SGX Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50's trend in India, was down 0.31 percent at 11,411.00, indicating a weak start for the Sensex and Nifty.

By CNBC-TV18Mar 28, 2019 8:17:37 AM IST (Updated)

1. Asia: MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3 percent, with South Korea down 0.7 percent and Shanghai blue chips slipping 0.3 percent. Japan's Nikkei fell 1.7 percent. US stocks could not escape the malaise with E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 off 0.5 percent.

2. US: The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 32.14 points, or 0.13 percent, to 25,625.59, the S&P 500 lost 13.09 points, or 0.46 percent, to 2,805.37 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 48.15 points, or 0.63 percent, to 7,643.38.

3. Markets At Close On Wednesday: The BSE Sensex erased early gains and ended over 100 points lower Wednesday as finance, banking and IT shares succumbed to selling pressure. The 30-share index settled 100.53 points, or 0.26 percent lower at 38,132.88, while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 38.20 points, or 0.33 percent, to 11,445.05.

4. Crude Oil: International Brent crude oil futures were at $67.63 a barrel at 0045 GMT, down 20 cents, or 0.3 percent, from their last close. Brent closed down 0.2 percent on Wednesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $59.18 per barrel, down 23 cents, or 0.4 percent, from their last settlement. WTI fell 0.9 percent on Wednesday.

5. Rupee: The rupee closed at 68.87, up by 1 paise against the dollar on Wednesday.

6. Dollar: The US dollar firmed against a basket of its competitors at 96.967. The yen held its own thanks to its safe-haven status and was last steady at 110.31 per dollar.

7. FIIs & DIIs: Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,481 crore on a net basis, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 135 crore on March 27.

8. RBI On Rupee Interest Rate Swap: The Reserve Bank on India on Wednesday allowed non-residents to participate in the rupee interest rate derivatives segment with a view to deepening the rupee interest rate swap (IRS) market. The non-residents can undertake rupee interest rate derivative transactions on recognised stock exchanges, electronic trading platforms and over the counter markets (OTCs).

9. RBI On February 12 Circular: Reserve Bank of India has submitted to the Supreme Court that its circular of last February removes the old norms for resolutions of stressed assets while allowing flexibility to lenders to choose their loan recovery plan individually or jointly. The Supreme Court has heard a bunch of petitions on the maintainability of RBI's Circular of February 12, 2018. The circular was issued to substitute all the existing guidelines with a harmonised and simplified generic framework for the resolution of stressed assets.

10. Bond Markets: Benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields slid but came off 15-month lows reached overnight, as investors remained focused on central bank dovishness globally. The yield curve inverted for the first time since 2007 on Friday and, if the inversion persists, some experts say it could indicate a recession is likely in one to two years.