Sensex, Nifty likely to start on a negative note today: 10 things to know before opening bell

Indian equity benchmarks Nifty and Sensex are likely to start lower on Wednesday, June 21 tracking largely negative cues from other major markets around the globe. SGX Nifty futures, an early indicator of the Nifty index, traded in the red ahead of the opening bell on Dalal Street.

On Tuesday, both the main gauges closed lower amid profit-booking. 

Here are the top 10 things you should know before the opening bell today:

SGX Nifty Futures: SGX Nifty futures — an early indicator of the Nifty index — were down 0.5 per cent at 18,781 at the last count ahead of the opening bell on Dalal Street.

Asian shares: Equities in other Asian markets were largely in the red, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan quoting 0.7 per cent lower. Japan's Nikkei 225 was up 0.4 per cent but China's Shanghai Composite down 0.2 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng down 1.4 per cent.

Wall Street: US stocks softened on Tuesday, as investors returned to trade following a long weekend, amid signs of weakening global demand. The three main US stock market benchmarks, the Dow Jones, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite finished 0.2-0.7 per cent lower. 

Sensex, Nifty fell a quarter per cent on Tuesday: The Sensex ended with a loss of 159 points or 0.3 per cent at 63,327.7 and the Nifty settled at 18,816.7, down 61 points or 0.3 per cent from its previous close.  

Rupee closing: The rupee depreciated by 18 paise to close at 82.12 against the US dollar on Tuesday amid fresh foreign capital outflows and rising crude prices in the international market. 

Gold prices: Spot gold was almost unchanged at $1,937 per ounce. US gold futures too were little changed at $1,948.2 an ounce.   

Dollar index: The US dollar index was steady at 102.55. Bitcoin jumped 5 per cent overnight to break over $28,000 for the first time since late May, helped by the launch of a new crypto exchange backed by Fidelity, Citadel Securites and Charles Schwab.

Crude oil prices: Oil futures eased in choppy trading on Tuesday on forecasts for slower oil demand growth in China, the world's second-biggest oil consumer, and disappointment with the size of cuts in China's key lending rates. Adding to the bearish market sentiment, traders noted crude supplies from Iran and Russia have increased in recent weeks.

Monsoon tracker: The IMD said the Southwest Monsoon has advanced into the remaining parts of the South Arabian Sea and some parts of the Central Arabian Sea, the entire Lakshadweep area, most parts of Kerala, some parts of Tamil Nadu, remaining parts of Comorin- Maldives area, Gulf of Mannar and some more parts of Southwest.

IndiGo into top 10 in market cap rank: The meteoric rise in shares of InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) has bolstered its market capitalisation rank among the airline stocks in the world. With a market cap of $11.5 billion, IndiGo occupies the 10th rank in the league table. IndiGo — the country’s largest airline — was ranked 13th at the beginning of the year.

(With inputs from agencies)