Markets open soft, global cues weigh

Markets have opened on a quiet note, following global cues. The Sensex has opened down 48 points at 17,757. Nifty is at 5,340 - down 20 points.

"The trend deciding level for the day is 17,795 / 5,361 levels. If Nifty trades above this level during the first half-an-hour of trade then we may witness a further rally up to 17,918 – 18,031 / 5,399 – 5,438 levels. However, if Nifty trades below 17,795 / 5,361 levels for the first half-an-hour of trade then it may correct up to 17,681– 17,558 / 5,322 – 5,284 levels," Angle Broking said on a research note.

US stocks edged lower on Friday as investors took a breather from a powerful rally that propelled the S&P to close above its 200-day moving average for the first time since August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 21.64 points, or 0.18%, at 12,186.91. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 5.93 points, or 0.46%, at 1,278.66.

Asian markets are trading in the neative zone. Hang Seng has slipped 0.25% to 19,969. Straits Times, Seoul Composite and Taiwan Weighted have dropped 0.2-0.8% each. Nikkei, however, is up 0.5% at 9,096. Global markets would be looking at the G-20 meeting on November 3 and 4 for direction. The Euro zone crisis is likely to be in limelight during the meeting.

Last week benchmark indices Nifty and Sensex closed on a positive note, higher by more than 6% on a week on week basis. The rally was led by sectors like metals and realty which gained more than 9% and 8%, respectively.

Weakness can be seen in most of the sectoral indices. However, the IT index has gained 1% at 5,882.

Wipro has reported Q2 net profit at Rs 1,301 crore a while ago. COnsolidated revenue stands at Rs 9,094 cr. The IT major has sees IT revenues to be at $1.5 -1.53 billion. The stock has surged 2.2% to Rs 381.

Metal and auto shares are in the red with the indices dropping nearly 1% in opening trades. BSE metal index is at 12,030 while auto index trades at 9,490.

Among individual stocks, Maruti Suzuki’s September 2011 quarter net profit saw a 59.81% decline to 240.44 crore. The auto major has dipped 3.5% to Rs 1,086.

Other auto names are also in red. Tata Motors has dropped 2.5% to Rs 201. Mahindra & Mahindra has dipped 0.3% at Rs 865.

Tata Global Beverages reported a 49% increase in consolidated net profit for the quarter ended September 30 to 77 crore versus 61.8 crore reported last year. The stock has rallied 3% to Rs 92.

Andhra Sugar has soared 14% to Rs 124 this morning after announcing results. The stock had touched a new 52-week high of Rs 130 in opening deals.

The Reliance ADAG pack stocks are trading weak. Reliance Capital has dropped 0.2%, Reliance Mediaworks is down 0.4% and Reliance Power has dropped 0.7% in morning trades. Reliance Communications has also slipped 1% to Rs 79.