Opening Bell – Nifty, Sensex open on a muted note

At 9:15 AM, the BSE Sensex opened higher by 1 points at 31274, while the Nifty50 opened higher by 3 points at 9656 mark.
 
India Bulls Housing Finance is the top Nifty gainer and Lupin Auto is the top Nifty loser in the morning hours. 
 
There are 953 advances, 445 declines and 502 unchanged stocks on NSE reflecting some positive bias floating in the market.
 
The level of 9,700 is likely to act as a strong barrier for the Nifty50. If it holds above the level of 9,700, a rally is likely up to the level of 9,730. On the downside, the support for Nifty50 index is placed in the region of 9,620-9,630.
 
The rupee opened at 64.31 per US dollar higher by 13 paise. On Friday, the rupee rose by 4 paise to a fresh one-week high of 64.44 against the US dollar on sustained selling of the American currency by exporters.
 
The US stocks closed higher on Friday, shrugging off weaker than expected job data. The tech-heavy Nasdaq outperformed its counterparts. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 59 points to finish at 6,306. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 62 points to close at 21,206. The S&P 500 index gained 9 points to 2,439.
 
Asian markets are trading flat on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 has gained 5 points. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has advanced 2 points. However, China’s Shanghai Composite has shed 9 points.