Nifty, Sensex open steady amid lack of positive triggers; eyes on global trade

The stock markets opened on a steady note on Friday with the benchmark indices trading marginally lower amid a lack of strong positive triggersThe markets are currently being driven by hopes of a possible trade deal between the European Union EU and the United States US along with expectations of bottoming out of earnings downgradesThe Nifty 50 index opened at 2586380 down 1405 points or 005 per cent while the BSE Sensex began the day at 8437979 slipping 2467 points or 003 per centMarket expert Ajay Bagga Banking and Market Expert told ANI Indian markets are steady for now but lack a positive catalyst with bottoming earnings downgrades and hopes for a EU and US trade deal the key drivers On the political front the Bihar elections which have ramifications for the Federal government coalition will be creating some uncertainty till the results are declared on November 14thIn the broader market indices on NSE the Nifty 100 index was seen trading flat in red during opening while the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 gained marginally and opened in greenAmong the sectoral indices Nifty Auto rose 021 per cent while Nifty FMCG also gained The Nifty IT index was flat in green while Nifty Metal Pharma and Realty came under slight pressure in the opening sessionAjit Mishra SVP Research Religare Broking said Going ahead indications point toward continued consolidation with support seen in the 2560025800 zone for the Nifty while a decisive rebound above 26100 could reignite momentum Amid this phase participants should focus on stockspecific opportunities in sectors and themes demonstrating relative strength and use the ongoing correction to accumulate quality names on dipsThe IPO market continues to remain active with several key issues in focus Lenskart Solutions the technologydriven eyewear retailer is set to open its IPO tomorrow October 31The issue size is Rs 727802 crore consisting of a fresh issue of Rs 2150 crore and an offer for sale of Rs 512802 crore The price band is fixed between Rs 382 to Rs 402 per share The company operates over 2700 stores globally including 2067 in India as of FY25Orkla India which offers a diverse range of food products saw its public issue subscribed 27 times on day two The bids were led by institutional investors 76x retail investors 21x and QIBs 6 per centStudds Accessories a Faridabadbased twowheeler helmet and motorcycle accessories manufacturer had its public issue subscribed 15 times on day one led by institutional investors 21x retail investors 22x and QIBs 2 per centSeveral major companies are set to announce their Q2FY26 results today including ACC Bajaj Electricals Bank of Baroda Bharat Electronics Bharat Petroleum Corporation Dr Lal PathLabs Maruti Suzuki India Medplus Health Services NOCIL Northern Arc Capital Patanjali Foods Shriram Finance Vedanta and Zensar TechnologiesIn global developments United States President Donald Trump said he had a truly great meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea where both leaders reached several key agreements to ease trade tensions and strengthen cooperationHowever US markets fell on Thursday amid investor concerns over excessive AI capital expenditure by technology giants without equivalent revenue growthThe weeks three major central bank events concluded with the Federal Reserve cutting rates while the ECB and BOJ held steady Hawkish Fed comments have made a December rate cut less certainDespite strong Big Tech results investors remain cautious about the large AIrelated spending The TrumpXi meeting was seen as a partial postponement with a major trade deal expected in the coming monthsAcross Asia market trends were mixed Japans Nikkei 225 surged 141 per cent Singapores Straits Times fell 022 per cent Hong Kongs Hang Seng dropped 066 per cent Taiwans Weighted Index rose 051 per cent and South Koreas KOSPI gained 042 per centThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever