Markets set for a flat start ahead of RBI monetary policy

The Indian benchmark indices on Tuesday got off to slight gap up and Nifty touched 9700 mark in opening minutes of trade, however, things turned pessimistic thereafter as traders resorted to booking profits at higher levels and indices settled the day in negative terrain. To end with, the NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index Nifty, took a cut of over quarter per cent to settle below the crucial 9,650 mark, while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index Sensex fell by over hundred points and closed below the psychological 31,200 mark.

The European markets ended Tuesday's session in negative terrain, extending the weakness of the previous day. Traders are nervy ahead of a series of potentially market moving events later this week. The European Central Bank will conclude its policy meeting on Thursday, the same day that UK voters head to the polls. The DAX of Germany dropped 1.04 per cent and the CAC 40 of France fell 0.73 per cent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. declined 0.01 per cent.

U.S stocks fell for a second session on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 48 points to end at 21,136. The S&P 500 index declined 7 points to close at 2,430. The Nasdaq Composite Index slid 21 points to close at 6,275.

Asian markets were trading mixed on Wednesday. Japan’s markets Nikkei 225 plunge 46 points. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 28 points. China’s Shanghai Composite surged 24 points.

At 8:10 am SGX Nifty Index trading with marginal gains of 14 points at 9,689, indicating a flat start for Indian indices. The two-day meeting of RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) concludes today. There almost appears to be unanimity on the RBI holding rates in its June policy to be announced today.