Stock Market LIVE Updates: Sensex, Nifty headed for muted start, signals GIFT Nifty; Auto cos eyed | News on Markets

Stock Market LIVE Updates, Monday, September 2, 2024: Indian benchmark indices were likely to open in the negative on Monday, as indicated by lower GIFT Nifty futures that were trading at 25,397 at 8:00 AM, around 130 points behind Nifty futures’ last close. 

Elsewhere, Asia-Pacific markets opened on a mixed note on Monday as investors focus on a packed week of economic data and assess China’s business activity figures released over the weekend.



Among the economic data coming out from major markets in the region are inflation data from South Korea, Australia’s second-quarter GDP data, as well as data on pay and household spending from Japan later this week.



China released its official purchasing managers’ index data for August. The manufacturing PMI fell to a six month low of 49.1, a faster contraction compared to the 49.4 seen in July.



The figure also missed the median forecast of 49.5 from economists polled by Reuters, with the index marking its fourth straight month in contraction territory.



On the other hand, China’s non-manufacturing PMI climbed to 50.3, up from July’s 50.2.



Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.94 per cent, crossing the 39,000 mark for the first time since July 31, while the broad based Topix was 0.49 per cent higher.



In contrast, South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.49 per cent, while the small cap Kosdaq was marginally lower.



Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.43 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures sat at 17,785, lower than the HSI’s last close of 17,989.07.



Oil prices fell. Brent crude futures for October delivery, which expired on Friday, settled 1.43 per cent at $78.80 a barrel, marking a decline of 0.3 per cent for the week and 2.4 per cent for the month.



US West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled down 3.11 per cent to $73.55.