Nifty, Sensex poised to open lower; Reliance Industries in spotlight

Stock market news: Benchmark indices are expected to open marginally lower on Thursday, taking cues from the fall in Asian and the US markets. Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries  will be among the key stocks in focus after Competition Commission of India gave a nod to its media assets merger deal with Walt Disney.

The GIFT Nifty was trading at 25,014 at 08:18 am, signaling that the NSE Nifty 50 may open marginally below its previous close of 25,052.35. Despite hitting a record high on Wednesday, the benchmark Nifty 50 experienced a pullback as profit-booking in various sectors limited gains in information technology stocks.

"We anticipate a gradual upward trend in the markets to persist, but expect volatility in today’s session due to the monthly derivatives expiry," said Siddhartha Khemka, head of retail research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

In the US, Wall Street equities closed lower overnight as Nvidia's impressive results failed to meet some investors' expectations. Asian markets found little momentum on Thursday, with a rout in the technology sector sending the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index 0.7 per cent lower.

Investors now await the preliminary estimate of the US gross domestic product for the second quarter due later today, along with the US Federal Reserve's core PCE index on Friday. This is generally viewed as a key gauge of inflation and central bank rate decisions.

Besides, investors keenly wait for the announcements from the AGM that will go on the floor later today.. Key updates are expected regarding its retail and telecom units, as well as developments in the new energy and oil-to-chemicals businesses.

Stocks to watch

• Paytm: Received government approval for investment in its payments arm.
• InterGlobe Aviation: Founder Rakesh Gangwal may sell a stake worth up to $850 million through block deals, according to reports.
• KEC International: Secured orders worth ₹11.71 billion ($139.5 million).
• Sonata Software: Landed a large multi-year, multi-million-dollar strategic IT outsourcing deal.