Indian markets open flat; investors remain cautious in anticipation of Fed rate cut this week

The Nifty 50 index opened at 25,406.65 points, gaining 50.15 points or 0.2 per cent, while the BSE Sensex surged 94.39 points at opening to 82,985.33 or 0.11 per cent.

Experts pointed out that the Fed rate cut announcement is the major event this Wednesday, and investors are now focused on whether the cut will be 50 bps or 25 bps.

"The Fed rate cut is coming this Wednesday. The main debate is should the Fed go in with a 50 bps cut or stick to a 25 bps cut. Over the last three decades, the Fed has started with a 50 bps cut when the economy was in the throes of a recession. Present economic conditions do not warrant a 50 bps cut" said Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market expert.

He further told ANI that "India is seeing increasing FII inflows and a weaker US Dollar will increase these flows. We remain optimistic on the Indian markets, backed by a strong macro, global central bank action and domestic plus international flows both providing a fillip to Indian markets".

In the broad market indices on national stock exchange, all major indices showed gains at opening. In the sectoral indices, except Nifty FMCG, all others opened with gains, while Nifty Realty emerged as the leader in gains with a surge of 0.97 per cent at the opening.

In the Nifty 50 list, 39 stocks opened with gains while 11 declined at the time of filing this report.

Market expert Bagga also noted that global markets are behaving like the Roaring 1920s, which brought massive excesses on the back of economic growth following the end of WWI and the Spanish Flu. He added, "We are dancing to the music," while reminding that the Roaring 20s ended in the Great Depression of 1929. He noted "Hope we get 5 more years like in the 1920s!"

The Asian markets opened flat on Monday, with Taiwan's market down 0.04 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declining by 0.45 per cent. The markets of Japan and South Korea were closed for a holiday. (ANI)