Sensex, Nifty Seen Opening Flat

(RTTNews) - Indian shares look set to open largely unchanged after falling modestly on Wednesday in the absence of any major triggers. With oil prices extending declines and the rupee holding steady after recent steep losses, the downside might be limited. Volatility cannot be ruled out ahead of the futures and options expiry.

Asian stocks were lackluster as a renewed slide in oil prices and a firmer dollar sapped investors' appetite for risk. Writing in German newspaper Handelsblatt, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde forecast that global economic growth will be "disappointing" and "uneven" in 2016.

Crude prices fell more than 3 percent in New York trading overnight, with Brent futures sliding toward 11-year lows after government data showed an unexpected increase in U.S. crude stockpiles in the last week.

U.S. stocks fell overnight in low volume trade, as the sharp fall in oil prices dragged down energy stocks and downbeat housing data stirred some concerns about the state of the economy. The Dow and the S&P 500 dropped about 0.7 percent each while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.8 percent.

European stocks also closed firmly in negative territory on Wednesday on the back of another sell-off in commodities. The German DAX fell 1.1 percent, France's CAC 40 shed half a percent and the FTSE 100 of the U.K. dropped 0.6 percent.