Sensex, Nifty Set For Muted Open On Hawkish Fed Minutes

(RTTNews) - Indian shares may follow global peers lower on Thursday amid mixed catalysts. Rate concerns may weight after the latest Fed meeting minutes indicated that the U.S. central bank may hold interest rates higher for longer.

On the positive side, megacap chipmaker Nvidia forecast revenue above estimates for the current quarter after first-quarter earnings blew past estimates.

The Reserve Bank of India has approved a massive, all-time high surplus transfer of Rs. 2,10,874 crores for FY24, boosting government revenues and aiding fiscal deficit target.

The surplus transfer could help the government either borrow less in FY25 or step up capital expenditure.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and Nifty eked out modest gains on Wednesday, with IT, realty and FMCG stocks leading the charge. The rupee gained 3 paise to close at 83.28 against the dollar.

Asian markets traded mixed this morning as U.S. equity futures rose following robust results from Nvidia Corp.

The dollar hovered near a one-week high while gold fell below the $2,400 per ounce level on hawkish FOMC minutes.

Oil extended declines for a fourth straight session to hover near a two-month low on demand concerns.

U.S. stocks struggled for direction before closing lower overnight as the minutes of the April 30-May 1 Fed meeting showed officials were disappointed in recent inflation data and discussed potential further rate hikes, if inflation surged.

In light of the economy's strength, officials believed "disinflation would likely take longer than previously thought."

Mixed quarterly results from retailer Target also raised questions about the resiliency of the U.S. consumer.

The Dow gave up half a percent, the S&P 500 eased 0.3 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slid 0.2 percent.

European stocks fell for a second straight session to hit one-week lows on Wednesday after data showed U.K. inflation rose at its slowest pace in April since July 2021 - denting hopes for a June rate cut.

The pan European STOXX 600 declined 0.3 percent. The German DAX dipped 0.3 percent, while France's CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 both shed around 0.6 percent.