India’s stock benchmarks are set for a muted start on Friday as investors await key GDP data and digest US President Donald Trump’s fresh comments on tariffs.
The GIFT Nifty futures were trading at 22,542 as of 07:59 a.m. IST, indicating that the blue-chip Nifty 50 will open near Thursday’s close of 22,545.05.
The Nifty 50 index has fallen more than 4% so far in February, and is on course for the fifth consecutive month of losses, its longest losing streak in 29 years.
Concerns over slowing economic growth and earnings momentum, Trump’s tariffs and persistent selling by foreign investors have pulled the benchmarks down 14% from record highs late September.
In that backdrop, the December quarter GDP data, scheduled for release after market hours on Friday, will be closely monitored by investors.
India’s economy likely rebounded in the December quarter, according to a Reuters poll of economists.
India’s benchmarks set to open little changed
On Thursday, the government appointed Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey as the chief of markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for three years.
Foreign inflows will be in focus as adjustments to the index provider MSCI’s February 2025 rebalancing kick in, leading to a likely inflow of $1.4 billion, possibly in the last hour’s trade.
Most Asian markets fell on Friday, with the MSCI Asia ex Japan index down 1.21%, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street amid a slump in chipmaker Nvidia.
Trump on Thursday said his proposed 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada will take effect on March 4 along with an extra 10% duty on Chinese imports.
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