Sensex, Nifty Likely To Open Higher Today; SBI Cards IPO In Focus

Domestic stock markets are likely to open higher on Monday, after six days of losses in a row tracking global peers amid concerns about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on world economy. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) Nifty futures - an early indicator of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty index in India - rose as much as 129.5 points to touch 11,296.50 ahead of the opening of the Indian markets. At 8:30 am, the SGX Nifty futures traded 116.00 points - or 1.04 per cent - up at 11,283.00, indicating a positive start for the Indian equity markets.

Official data on Friday showed India's GDP or gross domestic product expanded 4.7 per cent in October-December, in line with economists' estimates. Though the figures for the previous two quarters (July-September and April-June) were revised upwards to 5.1 per cent and 5.6 per cent respectively, the data still meant the economy grew at its slowest pace since January-March 2013.

Reacting to the latest figures, the government said the economy has bottomed out. Days before the release of data by the National Statistical Office, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said "green shoots" are visible in the economy.

Automobile stocks will be in focus on Monday as more companies report their monthly sales figures. On Sunday, Maruti Suzuki India reported a fall of 3.56 per cent in total domestic sales last month, and Mahindra & Mahindra said its sales declined 42.10 per cent in the same month. 

Meanwhile, SBI Cards and Payment Services' IPO or initial public offer will open later in the day. The credit card arm of the country's largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), has fixed a price band of Rs 750-755 per equity share for bidding under the IPO, through which it aims to raise around Rs 10,000 crore. 

Angel Broking has said it is "positive on the future outlook of the company given the favourable industry scenario, large untapped SBI Bank customers and strong financial track record" although the valuations are a bit on the higher side.

On Friday, the S&P BSE Sensex index had plummeted 1,448.37 points - or 3.64 per cent - to end at 38,297.29 and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark settled at 11,201.75, down 431.55 points - or 3.71 per cent - from the previous close. (Also Read: Sensex, Nifty Suffer 7% Weekly Loss, Analysts Say Anxiety Over Coronavirus Remains)

That marked a sixth straight day of losses for both benchmark indices, a period in which the Sensex lost a total 3,025.71 points (7.32 per cent) and the Nifty gave up 924.15 points (7.62 per cent).