Rupee may open at 61.5: All you need know before the opening bell

Global cues:

Asian markets look set for a cautious start to the week on Monday, with US stock futures and the dollar coming under pressure as politicians in Washington showed no signs of making progress over the weekend in resolving the US budget standoff.

The dollar, oil prices and US stock futures eased on Monday as politicians in Washington showed no signs of making progress to resolve the US budget standoff, while safe-haven gold inched higher. Democrats and Republicans remained far apart on ending the government shutdown, let alone reaching a deal on the US borrowing limit by Oct. 17 to avoid an unprecedented default.

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Republican House Speaker John Boehner vowed not to raise the debt ceiling without a “serious conversation” about what is driving the debt, while Democrats said it was irresponsible and reckless to raise the possibility of a default.

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The dollar was on the back foot against the yen and the Swiss franc in early Asian trade on Monday as the weekend produced little progress in Washington over the US budget standoff, keeping the greenback stuck close to 8-month lows against a basket of major currencies.

Gold ticked up in early Asian trading on Monday as the near-week long US government shutdown raised fears Congress may struggle to raise the US debt ceiling, burnishing bullion’s safe-haven appeal.

Business/Stock news:

Under attack from the Opposition, including the Left, for his remarks that Government was ready to privatise Air India, Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh backtracked saying it has “no intention” to do so. “This government has no intention to privatise Air India. After this package of Rs 32,000 crore, the government will not give any more money. Air India will have to fend for itself,” Singh said.

Jet Airways stocks will be in news today after the CCEA cleared the Jet-Etihad deal on Thursday. Jet shares had zoomed on Friday morning trade. However, it closed in negative after the Supreme Court decided to hear the plea against the deal.

Shobha Developer was the biggest gainer on the BSE Sensex. The company sold 1 million square feet of new spaces that are valued at Rs 632 crore in July-September quarter.

Apollo Tyres after it said it wants a reduction in the price it is to pay to acquire Cooper Tire, citing it faces “significant and unanticipated costs” relating to labour relations issues and accusing the US company of “misrepresenting” the extent of its control over a joint venture in China. The shareholders of Apollo Tyres seem to prefer that the $2.5-billion takeover deal with US-based Cooper Tire falls through. Since the deal was announced in June, shareholder sentiment has been down, convinced the acquisition will not help but will drain the financial resources.

Economy news:

Wal-Mart Stores Inc’s retail plans with India partner Bharti Enterprises are “not tenable” and both sides are looking for the best way to move forward, an executive with the US retailer told Reuters.Wal-Mart was expected to make a decision on its Indian retail plans later this month and Bharti will accordingly decide if those plans match its overall retail ambitions.