Indian Shares Seen Opening On Muted Note

(RTTNews) - Indian shares are seen opening on a cautious note on Friday, even as information technology stocks may rise as disappointing tech earnings fueled a rotation out of the artificial intelligence trade.

Amazon's quarterly results missed analyst expectations on profit and total revenue, and chip maker Intel warned it would burn cash this year due to the faltering PC market, fueling worries about the returns on investments in AI infrastructure.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and Nifty jumped over 1 percent each on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates steady, as widely expected, and oil prices softened following fresh diplomatic efforts to end the war in the Middle East.

The rupee consolidated in a narrow range before settling 2 paise higher at 95.26 against the U.S. dollar.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded shares worth Rs. 943.60 crore on a net basis on Thursday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth Rs. 1,924.41 crore, according to provisional exchange data.

Asian markets were broadly lower this morning as technology stocks extended losses for a second day running on concerns over the sustainability of the AI and technology trade.

Adding to the risk-off tone, Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, has frozen digital assets worth around $3bn (£2.24bn) as it investigates a "potential security issue."

A tech sell-off revived demand for Treasuries and weighed on the dollar. Asian government bond yields were lower, tracking drops in U.S. Treasury yields overnight. The yen was steady ahead of the Bank of Japan's interest-rate decision, with the central bank widely expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged.

Gold was subdued at $4,008 an ounce after dropping more than 1 percent in the previous session.

Brent crude futures rose over 2 percent to hold above $113 a barrel on signs the U.S. may resume military strikes against Iran.

According to reports by the Wall Stret Journal and Axios, a senior commander had briefed President Donald Trump on potential military options for a possible resumption of major combat operations on Thursday.

U.S. stocks ended lower overnight as Alphabet's revenue miss as well as negative free cash flow revived concerns about artificial trade.

A raft of mixed economic data also clouded the outlook for inflation and interest rates. Third-quarter GDP growth came in at an annualized 3.4 percent, surpassing analyst expectations and marking the fastest pace in a year.

Consumer spending rose in September as inflation stayed high at 3.6 percent on a year-on-year basis, marking the fastest pace since May.

The core PCE price index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, climbed 3.1 percent, matching expectations after holding at 3.0 percent for three consecutive months.

Initial jobless claims stayed near a 57-year low last week, signaling labor market resilience.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.4 percent as semiconductor stocks snapped their four-day winning streak. The S&P 500 and the Dow both slipped around 0.3 percent.

European stocks closed at a seven-week high on Thursday after the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged despite oil-driven inflation risks.

The pan-European STOXX 600 gained 0.8 percent. The German DAX surged 1.3 percent, France's CAC 40 climbed 1.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.3 percent.