Indian Shares Seen Opening Lower As Investors Await Key US Data

Indian shares are seen opening lower on Tuesday, tracking weak cues from global markets in the run-up to the release of key U.S. economic data that could offer clarity on the economic and rate outlook.

Meanwhile, media reports suggest that India and Mexico are negotiating a limited preferential trade agreement to address the impact of Mexico’s proposed 50 percent tariffs on Indian exports.

Mexico is India’s third-largest car export destination after South Africa and Saudi Arabia.

Benchmark indexes recovered from an early slide to end on a flat note Monday while the rupee weakened further to close at a fresh record low of 90.74 against the U.S. dollar, driven by continuous foreign investment outflows and lingering uncertainty around tariffs.

FIIs were net sellers of shares worth Rs 1,468 crore on Monday, while domestic institutional investors bought shares to the extent of Rs 1,792 crore, as per exchange provisional data.

Asian stocks were deep in the red this morning and the dollar hovered near a two-month low, while U.S. Treasury two-year yields steadied after edging down on Monday amid bets the Fed will cut rates twice next year.

Gold was marginally higher above $4,300 per ounce. Oil extended overnight losses as hopes for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal grew.

Overnight, U.S. stocks ended lower as investors braced for key economic data releases, including delayed jobs and inflation readings for clarity on the outlook for interest rates.

New York Fed President John Williams said monetary policy is well positioned for next year and he sees inflation moderating amid cooling in the job market.

Boston Fed President Susan Collins said last week’s rate reduction was a close call and that she “would want greater clarity about the inflation picture before adjusting policy further.”

Fed Governor Stephen Miran argued the policy stance is unnecessarily restrictive.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.6 percent as AI spending worries continued to weigh on stocks like Broadcom) and Oracle. The S&P 500 eased 0.2 percent and the Dow slid 0.1 percent.

European stocks ended higher at the start of a busy week for central bank meetings. The pan-European Stoxx 600 jumped 0.7 percent.

The German DAX edged up by 0.2 percent, France’s CAC 40 added 0.7 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 climbed 1.1 percent.