Markets may open with tentative gains despite positive cues from Asian peers

Although Asian peers looking in a good shape in early trading, Indian markets are likely to open with modest gains. At the time of writing SGX Nifty was trading higher by 36 points at 10,859 level.   
  
The Asian stocks were seen advancing on Wednesday in early trading, following comments from the Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who continued to stress that the central bank will remain patient with regard to future interest rate hikes while market participants look forward to the second summit between the US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up by 0.48 per cent, China’s Shanghai Composite index has gained 0.41 per cent and Hong Kong’s stock index Hang Seng has added 0.38 per cent. 
  
Back home, equity benchmark indices witnessed a gap-down opening on the back of Surgical Strike 2, the revenge against Pulwama attack where the Indian Air Force jets targeted JeM camps across the Line of Control. However, after the initial setback, the bulls bounced back strongly from the lower levels of the day and ended the Tuesday session with a modest decline. In the end, BSE Sensex shed 0.66 per cent and Nifty dipped 0.41 per cent. The broader indices ended with decline as well, with the Nifty Mid-cap slipping 0.14 per cent and Nifty Small-cap dropping 0.77 per cent. On the sectoral front, majority of the sectoral indices ended in the red. However, Nifty Media surged over 3 per cent and emerged as the top gainer, while Nifty Realty and Nifty PSU Banks ended as top losers. 
  
The US markets opened lower owing to reports of weaker-than-expected earnings of few companies. Additionally, the housing numbers fell much more than expected. However, a solid consumer confidence was recorded in the month of February, which helped the markets to gain back a good portion of the day’s losses. At the closing bell on Tuesday, the Dow Jones dipped 0.13 per cent, tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.07 per cent and the S&P 500 slipped 0.08 per cent. In the testimony on the semi-annual monetary policy report before the Senate Banking Committee, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the Fed will remain patient in determining further adjustments in interest rates, given the uncertainty in the economic outlook.   
  
Majority of markets in Europe ended Tuesday’s session with gains. The DAX of Germany advanced 0.31 per cent and the CAC 40 rose 0.13 per cent, while the FTSE 100 of the UK declined 0.45 per cent.