Markets open on a subdued note

The markets had a soft opening with the Sensex starting lower by 19 points at 18,366 and the Nifty shed 10 points to start at 5,510. In the broader markets, the smallcap index climbed 0.3% while the midcap index added nearly 0.2% outperforming the BSE benchmark index, Sensex down 0.01%.

Among the sectoral indices, Realty, IT and Consumer Durables are leading the gains while FMCG index which was on an upmove started down 1%. Auto, Power and Oil & gas indices were the other indices which started in the negative. Also, the monthly IIP data is expected today.

Overnight in the US market, Wall Street ended higher for the first time in over a week on Thursday, with the Dow and the S&P 500 rising nearly 1%, but many analysts saw the rebound as short-lived. A report showing record U.S. exports in April eased some concerns about a stalled economic recovery, which had been weighing on the market.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.63% at 12,124. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.74% at 1,289. The Nasdaq Composite Index 0.35% at 2,685. Meanwhile, brent crude rose 1.5% yesterday reaching a five-week high as OPEC's surprise failure to reach a deal on raising output stoked more fears of leaner supplies later in the year.

In the Asian markets, most of the indices climbed after U.S. trade data gave investors some optimism on the direction of economic growth there. Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average was the top gainer which rallied 1.2%. KLSE Composite and Jakarta Composite gaining 0.3% ecah are some of the other gainers while Straits Times, Seoul Composite are flat with a positive bias. Shanghai Composite, Hang Seng and Taiwan Weighted lost between 0.3-0.7%

The top gainers in the opening trades are Hindalco, TCS, ONGC and Jaiprakash Associates gaining in the range of 0.5-1%

On the other hand, FMCG major, ITC shed 2% followed by Maruti Suzuki, RIL, Bharti Airtel, NTPC and Hindustan Unilever losing between 0.4-1% were the top losers among the Sensex stocks.

The market breadth is positive. Of the total 1375 stocks traded on the BSE, 832 stocks have advanced while 479 declined.