Sensex, Nifty Set For Weak Start As Investors Await Fed Cues

(RTTNews) - Indian shares look set to open on a sluggish note on Monday ahead of what could be a volatile week of trading amid the impending F&O expiry and the Fed's annual Jackson Hole economic symposium, where Fed Chair Jerome Powell's key speech might offer additional clues about the pace of future interest-rate hikes.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and the Nifty rose for the fifth straight week last week despite steep losses on Friday.

India's foreign exchange (forex) reserves fell by $2.238 billion to $570.74 billion for the week ended August 12 as the RBI intervened to defend the rupee, central bank data showed on Friday.

Separately, the minutes of the MPC's recent policy meeting expressed concern that the impact of recent changes to GST rates and somewhat uneven distribution of the southwest monsoon rainfall could be a source of upward pressure on prices.

Asian markets traded mostly lower this morning, while the dollar hit a fresh five-week high and benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields rose above 3 percent in Tokyo trading for the first time since July 21 after another Federal Reserve official flagged the likelihood of continued aggressive monetary tightening.

Russia announced a three-day halt to European gas supplies via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline at the end of this month and China central bank cut its benchmark lending rate again, adding to global recession fears.

Gold hit over three-week low on dollar strength while oil prices fell over 1 percent in Asian trade on demand concerns.

U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday amid rising recession risks and uncertainty over the Fed's rate-hiking path.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 2 percent and the S&P 500 gave up 1.3 percent to snap four-week winning streaks while the Dow closed 0.9 percent lower. European stocks declined on Friday on concerns about slowing economic growth, soaring inflation and prospects for tighter monetary policy.

The pan European Stoxx 600 fell 0.8 percent. The German Dax fell 1.1 percent and France's CAC 40 index shed 0.9 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 inched up 0.1 percent.