Indian shares are seen opening lower on Wednesday, extending the previous session's losses as comments from a former Greek prime minister that Europe has begun preparations for a possible Greek exit from the euro intensified concerns about the region's ability to resolve the debt crisis.
Asian markets are declining across board and commodities lost ground, while the safe-haven U.S. dollar strengthened against both the euro and the yen ahead of an informal summit of EU leaders later in the day.
U.S. stocks ended flat overnight after trading with a positive bias for a major part of the session following data that showed existing home sales in the U.S. rose to their highest annual rate in nearly two years in April.
Buying interest remained relatively subdued after Fitch Ratings lowered Japan's credit rating and former Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said preparations are being made for Greek exit from the euro. The tech-heavy Nasdaq slid 0.3 percent following a rally the day before and the Dow edged down less than a tenth of a percent, while the S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent.
Closer home, shares fell on Tuesday, erasing early gains, as the retreat in the rupee despite RBI's latest measures to curb speculation in the currency futures market sparked fears of fresh capital outflows. The benchmark BSE Sensex ended down 157 points or 0.97 percent at 16,026, while the broader Nifty index fell by 46 points or 0.93 percent to 4,860.
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