Mumbai Stock Market Opens Lower After Record High, Key Events Ahead

The stock market in Mumbai, Maharashtra, opened slightly lower on Friday after reaching an all-time high in the previous session. The Sensex started 94.13 points down at 78,580.12, and the Nifty fell 19.25 points to 23,849.55. Weak signals from Asian markets affected the market sentiment.

Among Nifty companies, 21 saw gains while 29 experienced losses. Top gainers included Ultra Cement, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Grasim Industries, JSW Steel, and Tata Steel. On the other hand, Tech Mahindra, TCS, HCL Technologies, Shriram Finance, and Nestle India were the top losers.

Ajay Bagga, a banking and market expert, noted that Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) sold heavily in the cash markets, but Domestic Institutional Investors (DII) stepped in to buy. He mentioned that the U.S. Presidential Election Debate and the U.S. Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation number are significant upcoming events that could influence the market.

In the U.S., stock indices closed slightly higher on Wednesday, driven by Amazon’s new AI initiative. However, a poor outlook from Micron Technology affected the semiconductor sector. Chinese industrial profit growth slowed, and the Japanese yen hit a near 38-year low against the dollar. U.S. home sales also declined in May.

Varun Aggarwal, founder and managing director of Profit Idea, reported that Asian markets were trading negatively on Thursday. Despite this, crude oil prices saw a slight increase. The U.S. Dollar Index also rose, reflecting the dollar’s strength amidst global economic uncertainties.

Market participants are closely watching global economic indicators and key events. The Indian market is in a consolidation phase after reaching an all-time high, awaiting further cues from both domestic and international events. The anticipated U.S. inflation data and domestic earnings announcements are expected to provide clearer direction in the coming weeks.