Nifty, Sensex set for flat opening amid profit booking ahead of key economic data

Stock market news: Benchmark indices are likely to open flat in trade on Wednesday, still below their record highs, as investors prepare for further profit taking ahead of major macroeconomic data due later this week.

The GIFT Nifty quoted 25,002.5 at 08:07 am, indicating that the NSE Nifty 50 is set to open near its previous close of 25,017.75.

The Nifty 50 index surged about 3.6 per cent in nine consecutive sessions to mark the longest daily winning spree in 16 months. It also came within five points of an all-time high on Tuesday, driven by ample market liquidity.

Foreign institutional investors have remained net buyers of Indian shares for four straight sessions now, buying stocks worth Rs 1,504 crore on net basis on Tuesday. Also, DIIs continued to maintain their buying spree and have been net buyers for 15 sessions in a row till Monday.

Market analysts indicate that profit-taking is anticipated to persist as caution intensifies in proximity to record highs, particularly within the thriving sectors. This development occurs in advance of significant domestic growth data and US inflation metrics scheduled for release later in the week.

On the contrary, markets in Asia opened lower this morning. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan index fell 0.4% while equities on Wall Street ended the trading session with a slight gain, supported by optimism from an Nvidia quarterly report and the to-be-released US economic data from the overnight session.