Sensex, Nifty may open lower
The Fed will conclude its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday later, and central bank Chair Jerome Powell is set to speak at a press conference.
Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could fall 25 points at the opening bell. Overseas, Asian stocks are trading mixed on Wednesday as the world waited to hear from the US Federal Reserve on when it would stop buying assets and start raising interest rates.
China released a slew of key economic data on Wednesday. Its industrial output for November was up 3.8% year-on-year, more than the 3.5% increase in October. Data also showed that retail sales in November rose 3.9% year-on-year, less than October’s 4.9% increase.
U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday as some large tech stocks moved lower and new inflation data continued to show a sharp rise in producer prices.
The Fed will conclude its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday later, and central bank Chair Jerome Powell is set to speak at a press conference.
On the Covid front, Pfizer announced that its drug aimed at treating patients with the virus proved effective in a final analysis, including against the new omicron variant. However, the World Health Organization warned on Tuesday that the new variant appeared to be spreading faster than previous versions of the virus.
Domestic markets
Back home, the benchmark indices ended with modest cuts on Tuesday. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 166.33 points or 0.29% at 58,117.09. The Nifty 50 index fell 43.35 points or 0.25% at 17,324.90.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 763.18 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 425.43 crore in the Indian equity market on 14 December, provisional data showed.