Domestic indices may open flat

Indian markets started the day on a promising note, but if failed to hold on to the momentum as profit booking emerged in the second half of trading session and ended the day with marginal losses. The BSE Sensex shed about 51 points to 31,904, while the CNX Nifty was down by 26 points to settle below the important psychological 9900 mark.

The European markets ended Thursday’s session with mixed performance. The ECB left its key interest rates and massive stimulus unchanged and also kept the forward guidance intact, thus retaining the downward bias on asset purchases. The DAX of Germany fell 5 points and the CAC 40 of France edge down 17 points. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. bucking the trend gained 57 points to close at 7,488.

U.S. Stocks showed lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Thursday, in spite of the lacklustre performance, the tech-heavy Nasdaq extended its recent winning strip to close at fresh record high. The Nasdaq inched up 5 points to close at 6,390, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 29 points to 21,612. The S&P 500 index closed almost unchanged.

Asian markets declined in early trade on Friday; Japan’s Nikkei 225 leading the fall as it has shed 51 points followed by Hong Kong Hang Seng which has dipped 32 points and China’s Shanghai Composite which is almost unchanged.

Domestic bourses are likely to open flat, tracking subdued cues from Asian Peers and lacklustre performance of U.S. stocks in overnight trade. Ashok Leyland, DHFL, MRPL will remain in focus in today’s trading session as they will report their earnings on Friday.