Sensex, Nifty Seen Opening Flat To Lower On Weak Asian Cues

(RTTNews) - Indian shares look set to open on a cautious note Friday, tracking sluggish cues from other Asian markets as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut Asia's economic forecasts, saying China's economic slowdown will weigh on the region's growth.

Investors were also reacting to mixed earnings updates from Apple, Amazon and Intel released after the U.S. market close.

Closer home, the Reserve Bank of India said it would hold a special meeting of its rate-setting committee on 3 November to prepare a report for the government on why it failed to keep retail inflation below the target of 6 percent for three consecutive quarters since January.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and the Nifty ended a choppy session up around half a percent each on Thursday while the rupee rose by 34 paise to close at 82.47 against the greenback.

The dollar climbed, making greenback-priced commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies.

Gold held steady and headed for a second week of gains. Oil prices fell in Asian trade but headed for a weekly gain on supply concerns.

U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight and bond yields dipped, as GDP figures surprised to the upside but also offered some evidence of a healthy slowdown that could have a positive impact on fighting inflation.

The Dow rose 0.6 percent to extend gains for the fifth straight session and reach its highest closing level in well over a month, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 1.6 percent after Meta's quarterly miss and the S&P 500 shed 0.6 percent.

Data showed the U.S. economy grew 2.6 percent in the third quarter following two straight quarters of contractions.

European stocks recouped losses to end mixed on Thursday after the European Central Bank raised interest rates by 75 basis points, as widely expected, and hinted at a slower pace of future increases amid mounting concerns about economic growth.

The pan European STOXX 600 ended flat with a negative bias. The German DAX inched up 0.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.3 percent while France's CAC 40 index dropped half a percent.