Indian Shares Seen Lower On Weak Global Cues

Indian shares are seen opening a tad lower on Thursday as the U.S. Federal Reserve kept its policy rate unchanged, as widely expected, after cutting it at three consecutive meetings during the final months of last year.

There is some cheer on the economic front as new data showed India’s industrial output growth accelerated unexpectedly in December to the highest level in over two years.

Industrial production advanced 7.8 percent year-over-year in December, faster than the upwardly revised 7.2 percent gain in November.

The expected increase was 5.5 percent. Further, this was the strongest expansion since October 2023.

The Economic Survey 2025-26 will be tabled during the Budget Session of Parliament later today ahead of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s Union Budget speech on February 1.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and Nifty rose by 0.6 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively on Wednesday to extend gains from the previous session amid optimism that the historic free trade agreement between India and the European Union will give an economic boost for India’s export sectors.

The rupee fell by 31 paise to close at a record low of 91.99 against the U.S. dollar, pressured by heightened month-end demand for the greenback and lingering geopolitical concerns.

Foreign investors net bought shares to the extent of Rs 480 crore on Wednesday, turning net buyers for the first time in 2026, while domestic institutional investors net bought shares worth Rs 3,361 crore, according to provisional exchange data.

Asian markets were broadly lower this morning as mixed earnings results from major technology companies prompted renewed doubts about the strength of the AI-driven rally.

Tesla earnings and sales fell less than expected in Q4. Meta earnings topped Q4 views but the company guided up on capital expenditures.

Microsoft posted slower cloud-computing growth and said spending surged to a record high in the last three months of 2025.

Gold surged to another record high above $5,500 an ounce as the dollar looked vulnerable despite verbal support from both U.S. and European officials.

In an interview with U.S. broadcaster CNBC, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. has a strong dollar policy and that means setting the right fundamentals.

ECB officials said a further steep rise in the euro could warrant cuts in interest rates.

Oil prices extended their recent rally as investors weighed U.S. economic policy uncertainties against geopolitical dynamics.

U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran to make a nuclear deal with the U.S. or face military strikes far worse than the attack he ordered last June.

Overnight, U.S. stocks ended narrowly mixed as the Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold in a split decision and signaled little urgency to resume cuts amid still-elevated inflation alongside solid economic growth.

In his closely monitored press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell emphasized keeping politics away from Fed decisions, as inflation remains above target levels.

While the S&P 500 finished marginally lower, the Dow closed flat with a positive bias and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.2 percent.

European stocks ended firmly in the red on Wednesday as the Fed decision and a slew of tech sector results loomed.

The pan European Stoxx 600 fell 0.8 percent. The German DAX dipped 0.3 percent, France’s CAC 40 tumbled 1.1 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 shed half a percent.