Market is seen opening lower, tracking mixed leads from Asian markets. Trading of Nifty 50 index futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could fall 2 points at the opening bell.

Overseas, Asian shares were mixed in early trade on Thursday amid rising trade tensions between the US and China. Beijing said on Wednesday that it will retaliate against the latest round of US tariffs on Chinese imports. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced a 25% tariff on $16 billion worth of American goods. The 333 goods being targeted by China include vehicles such as large passenger cars and motorcycles.

The announcement came after the US Trade Representative's office released a finalised list of $16 billion worth of Chinese goods that will be hit with tariffs, taking effect on 23 August 2018. The latest US list brings the total amount of Chinese goods facing a 25% tariff to $50 billion.

US stock-market indices closed mostly lower on Wednesday as investors grappled with a fresh round of tariff clashes between the Trump administration and China and a batch of weak earnings from high-profile firms such as Walt Disney Co. and Snap Inc.

Closer home, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 568.63 crore yesterday, 8 August 2018, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 30.25 crore yesterday, 8 August 2018, as per provisional data.

Key equity indices logged modest gains yesterday, 8 August 2018, on steady buying demand with the Sensex and the Nifty, both, scaling record highs in intraday as well as on closing basis. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 221.76 points or 0.59% to settle at 37,887.56. The Nifty 50 index gained 60.55 points or 0.53% to settle at 11,450.