Market seen opening weak on global cues; inflation data eyed

Key benchmark indices are likely to slump in opening trade weighed by weak global cues. Inflation data in the year to 3 January 2009 scheduled to be announced during the day and TCS Q3 December 2008 earnings will be closely watched.

India's largest software services exporter TCS will declare its Q3 December 2008 results today, 15 January 2009. Aggregate results for 54 companies showed 33.40% rise in net profit on a 44.80% increase in net sales in Q3 December 2008 over Q3 December 2007.

Asian markets were trading weak today, 15 December 2009, after Japanese machinery orders and US retail sales dropped. China's Shanghai Composite was down 0.53% or 10.13 points at 1,918.74, Hong Kong's Hang Seng plunged 4.24% or 580.72 points at 13,123.89, Japan's Nikkei tumbled 3.98% or 335.68 points at 8,102.77, Singapore's Straits Times declined 2.83% or 49.93 points at 1,714.79, South Korea's Seoul Composite fell 4.63% or 54.7 points at 1,127.98 and Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted slipped 4.01% or 181.13 points at 4,340.34.

North America's biggest telephone equipment maker, Nortel Networks Corporation, yesterday, 14 January 2009 filed for bankruptcy, hoping to save a once highflying business whose decade-long decline has accelerated with the global economic crisis. The filing marks a crucial stage in the slow deterioration of one of Canada's most prominent companies.

US markets plunged to six-week lows on Wednesday, 14 January 2009 on worries about deeper losses at banks worldwide and as US retail sales data pointed to a deepening recession. US retail sales dropped for a sixth month with a 2.7% slump in December 2008, the Commerce Department said. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 248.34 points, or 2.94%, to 8,200.22; while the S&P 500 slid 29.12 points, or 3.34%, to 842.67 and the Nasdaq Composite shed 56.82 points, or 3.67%, to 1,489.64.

Back home, key benchmark indices snapped four-day declining trend on Wednesday, 14 January 2009 on frenzied buying in index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) and IT pivotals. The BSE 30-share Sensex surged 299.13 points or 3.30% at 9370.49 and the S&P CNX Nifty gained 90.35 points or 3.29% at 2835.30.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers worth Rs 91.44 crore while mutual funds bought shares worth Rs 10.98 crore on Wednesday, 14 January 2009, according to provisional data on NSE.