Sensex, Nifty Set To Open Lower After Trump's Visa Crackdown

(RTTNews) - Indian shares look set to open lower on Monday, with tech stocks likely to be in focus after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order slapping an additional fee on H-1B visa holders, potentially impacting profitability and prompting companies to rethink hiring strategies.

The Trump administration has imposed a $100,000 "one-time" payment on new applicants of H-1B visas, which applies only to new visas, not renewals, and not current visa holders. The executive order came into force Sunday at 12:01 am U.S. Eastern time (0401 GMT).

The focus will also be on trade talks, with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal visiting Washington today to accelerate stalled talks on a long-pending trade deal.

"The delegation plans to take forward the discussions with a view to achieve early conclusion of a mutually beneficial trade agreement," an official statement said on Saturday.

Asian markets were mixed this morning and the dollar gained while gold edged up toward $3,700 per ounce. Oil prices climbed on prospects of fresh EU sanctions against Russia.

U.S. stocks rose on Friday, with the major averages all reaching new record closing highs, amid expectations of additional rate cuts this year and following reports of a cordial tone of U.S.-China negotiations.

President Trump described a call with his Chinese part Xi Jinping that included discussion on selling blockbuster app TikTok as 'very productive' although no final decision was reached.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.7 percent, the S&P 500 added half a percent and the Dow gained 0.4 percent.

European stocks ended slightly lower on Friday, with trade issues and economic concerns in the spotlight.

The pan European STOXX 600 eased 0.2 percent. The German DAX dipped 0.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 slid 0.1 percent and France's CAC 40 ended flat with a negative bias.