Market seen volatile

Key benchmark indices are likely to see a flat start on mixed global cues. The worsening global economic crisis may keep investors nervous in this truncated trading week, with stock markets remaining shut on 10 and 11 March 2009 on account of local holidays.

Asian markets were trading mixed today, 9 March 2009. China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.51% or 11.13 points at 2,204.13, South Korea's Seoul Composite was up 0.11% or 1.21 points at 1,056.24. However, Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 1.20% or 143.55 points at 11,777.97, Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.81% or 57.91 points at 7,115.19, Singapore's Straits Times fell 1.84% or 27.80 points at 1,485.32 and Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted lost 0.97% or 45.05 points at 4,608.58

US markets recovered in late trade to end on mixed note, on Friday, 6 March 2009, on reports that Lloyds Banking Group reached an asset-protection deal with the UK government wherein the UK government will pick 77% stake in Lloyds Banking Group after agreeing a deal to underwrite $370 billion of risky assets. Meanwhile the US said unemployment rate in February 2009 had risen to the highest in 25 years

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 32.5 points or 0.49% to 6,626.94 and the S&P 500 index rose 0.83 points or 0.12% to 683.38. However the Nasdaq Composite fell 5.74 points or 0.44% at 1293.85

Back home, key benchmark indices slumped in the week ended 6 March 2009 with the BSE Sensex sliding to 3-year low as grim economic data pulled world stocks to six-year low and heavy selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). The 30-share BSE Sensex lost 565.79 points or 6.36% to 8,325.82 and the 50-unit S&P Nifty lost 143.50 points or 5.19% to 2620.15 in the week ended 6 March 2009.

According to provisional data on NSE, Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers worth Rs 274.68 crore while mutual funds bought shares worth Rs 298.94 crore on Friday, 6 March 2009.

However FIIs were net buyers of index futures to the tune of Rs 678.57 crore and bought index options worth Rs 1.41 crore on Friday, 6 March 2009. They were net sellers of stock futures to the tune of Rs 96.69 crore while bought stock options worth Rs 11.63 crore.