By Bharath Rajeswaran and Manvi Pant
BENGALURU (Reuters) -India’s benchmark indexes opened marginally lower on Friday, as investors remained jittery ahead of a crucial U.S. jobs report that could determine the size and speed of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cuts.
The Nifty 50 index fell 0.16% to 25,103.25 points, while the S&P BSE Sensex lost 0.21% to 82,029.97, as of 9:24 a.m. IST.
The blue-chip index hit a record high at the start of the week but has lost about 0.5% since as investors are concerned about the health of the U.S. economy.
“Markets are on edge… ahead of a busy macro calendar in the coming weeks, including the U.S. jobs report, and the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision on Sept. 18,” said Vikram Kasat, head of advisory at PL Capital at Prabhudas Lilladher.
Worries over a slowdown in the U.S. labour market re-emerged after data showed soft job openings overall and fewer job gains in the private sector, raising expectations of a 50-basis-point rate cut when the Fed meets on Sept. 17-18.
The U.S. non-farm payroll report for August, due after Indian markets close, will give more clarity on the health of the labour market.
A weak report will raise the odds of a 50-bp cut, while a report showing a recovering labour market will bolster bets of a 25-bps cut.
A U.S. rate cut should increase foreign fund flows to emerging markets such as India.
Ten of the 13 major sectors logged losses in early trade. The more domestically-focussed small-caps rose 0.4% while mid-caps were flat.
Among individual stocks, Aavas Financiers rose 3.2% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to “buy” from “neutral”, citing better visibility on earnings growth.
Va Tech Wabag and KEC International rose 5% and 4%, respectively, on order wins.
(Reporting by Manvi Pant and Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
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