Market may open higher on firm Asian markets

The market is likely to open higher tracking positive Asian markets. In absence of any near term major domestic trigger with Q4 March 2008 results almost over, market is likely to dance in line with global cues.

Expiry of May 2008 futures & options series on Thursday, 29 May 2008 will keep the market volatile in the coming days. As per reports, rollover of Nifty positions from May 2008 series to June 2008 series stood at 39% and marketwide positions were 30%, as on 26 May 2008.

Asian markets were trading firm today, 27 May 2008, as bargain hunters scoured the market after five days of losses. Japan's Nikkei (up 0.82% at 13,802.62), Hong Kong's Hang Seng (up 0.56% at 24,263.52), Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted (up 0.56% at 8,756.69), South Korea's Seoul Composite (up 0.94% at 1,817.56) and Singapore's Straits Times (up 0.05% 3,105.24), edged higher. However China's Shanghai Composite fell 3.13% at 3,364.54.

US markets were closed on Monday, 26 May 2008 for Memorial Day.

Back home, relentless selling in banking, and capital goods stocks led the fall on Monday, 26 May 2008. The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 301.14 points or 1.81% at 16,348.50 and the broader based S&P CNX Nifty was down 71.5 points or 1.45% at 4875.05, on that day.

As per provisional data, foreign funds sold shares worth a net Rs 1337.33 crore on Monday, 26 May 2008. Domestic funds bought shares worth a net Rs 842.05 crore on that day.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers of Rs 638.39 crore in the futures & options segment on Monday, 26 May 2008. They were net sellers of index futures to the tune of Rs 361.74 crore and bought index options worth Rs 40.72 crore. They were net sellers of stock futures to the tune of Rs 387.22 crore and bought stock options worth Rs 69.85 crore.