Indian Shares Set For Muted Opening

(RTTNews) - Indian shares are seen opening little changed on Monday, tracking mixed cues from global markets.

Brent crude futures traded lower this morning but remained elevated near $108 a barrel, adding to uncertainty over the broader market outlook.

Corporate earnings, the release of RBI MPC meeting minutes, the Jio Platforms IPO and flash Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) readings will be in focus as the holiday-shortened week progresses. Prominent companies scheduled to release their quarterly earnings this week include names like Bajaj Finance, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Eternal, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Infosys, JSW Steel, Shriram Finance and UltraTech Cement.

Indian stock markets will remain closed on October 22 on account of Dussehra. The NSE Nifty index surged 2.8 percent last week and the BSE Sensex climbed 3.1 percent on the back of easing global bond yields and upbeat management commentary from IT companies.

Asian markets were mixed this morning, with AI spending concerns and elevated oil prices keeping investors on edge. China reported better-than-expected Q3 GDP growth, helping limit regional losses.

The dollar was firm in early Asian trade while the euro weakened after nationwide protests in France over living costs turned violent.

Gold edged up slightly to hover around $4,180 an ounce after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh voiced optimism about U.S. economic resilience and the impact of AI on economic growth and productivity.

Warsh said he won't prejudge what the U.S. central bank will do about interest rates at its upcoming policy meeting, suggesting the Fed would wait until December to raise rates.

Brent crude prices were down nearly 2 percent after climbing on Friday amid escalating hostilities in the Middle East and Eastern Europe. A Saudi helicopter crash near the border with Yemen due to a technical malfunction killed two crew.

An oil tanker caught fire and exploded after striking a naval mine in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy said.

Ukrainian attacks set an oil export terminal ablaze in St Petersburg on Sunday, as Kyiv launched more than 1,000 drones at Russia in one of the war's largest aerial assaults.

U.S. President Donald Trump accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of prolonging the war with Russia and said his decisions to suspend several Russian sanctions is an effort to keep Moscow at the negotiating table.

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday due to a broader sell-off in technology companies amid renewed concerns about debt-fueled AI infrastructure spending.

Inflation and rate hike worries also returned to the fore as U.S. crude oil futures spiked back above $100 a barrel for the first time in a month after Iran escalated attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine collapsed.

In economic releases, data showed U.S. industrial production as well as import and export prices rose more than expected in September.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slumped 2.1 percent to reach its lowest closing level in a month, while the S&P 500 tumbled 1.1 percent and the narrower Dow dipped 0.3 percent.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted their worst week since June, reflecting mounting worries about how long the frenzy over the AI buildout will last.

European stocks closed higher on Friday to wrap up their best week since late June as strong earnings outweighed concerns over rising inflation.

The pan-European STOXX 600 surged 0.7 percent. The German DAX rallied 1 percent, France's CAC 40 rose 0.3 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.4 percent.