The Indian market is likely to open on a subdued note Thursday, tracking weak Asian cues after worrisome jobs figures from the U.S. private sector and a possible credit rating downgrade on Spain fueled worries about the prospects for a global economic recovery. Elsewhere, manufacturing growth in China and Australia slowed in June for a second straight month, data released on Thursday showed.
Closer home, concerns about rising inflation and an erratic monsoon may also keep underlying sentiment cautious.
On the economic front, India's current account deficit for the period January to March widened, as trade deficit increased, figures released by the country's central bank showed. The current account deficit was $13 billion, up from $12.2 billion deficit in the period October to December.
On a BoP basis, India's merchandise exports recorded growth of 36.2% in January to March compared to a decline of 20% a year ago, while imports logged 43% growth compared to a decline of 20.8% last year.
The Moody's Investors Service said that it has put Spain's AAA local and foreign currency government bond ratings on review for a possible downgrade. The rating agency said its decision was prompted by the country's deteriorating economic growth prospects, the challenges the government faces in achieving its fiscal targets and concerns over the impact of rising funding costs over the medium term.
The benchmark indexes in China, Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan are now declining by 0.11%- 1.9%, while futures on the Dow index are down 61 points.
On Wall Street, stocks gave up early gains and declined sharply on Wednesday, as the prospect of Moody's downgrading Spain's credit rating generated a late-session selling spree. All the major averages ended the day at their worst levels in over six months. While the Dow and the S&P 500 fell about a percent each, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 lost around 1.2%.
However, the Indian ADRs closed on a mixed note. While ICICI Bank, Wipro, Reddy's Laboratories and Mahindra Satyam posted modest losses, Sterlite, MTNL and HDFC Bank closed in positive territory.
Crude oil prices ended lower on Wednesday, recording their first quarterly loss since 2008, as concerns over economic recovery overshadowed data showing a bigger-than-expected weekly decline in U.S. crude inventories. Light, sweet crude for August delivery settled down $0.31 at $75.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Meanwhile, the Indian rupee erased initial losses to close with a marginal four paise gain at 46.44/45 against the dollar on Wednesday in tandem with the rise in stocks.
A slight rebound in European stocks and expectations about the upcoming first-quarter reporting season helped the Indian stock market end Wednesday's session sharply higher near the day's high. While the 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 167 points or 0.95% to 17,701, the 50-share Nifty closed up 56 points or 1.07% at 5,312 and the BSE small-cap and mid-cap indexes added about half a percent each.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.