Asian share markets are lower today as investors searched for new cues after digesting the signals from the US Federal Reserve.

The Hang Seng is up 0.4% while the Nikkei is flat. The Shanghai Composite is down 0.1%.

In US stock markets, Wall Street indices ended on a positive note as an upbeat sales forecast from Cisco Systems helped to lift the technology sector. At the same time, data showed the economy remained relatively strong.

The Dow Jones gained 0.1% while the Nasdaq added 0.2%.

Back home, Indian share markets are trading on a flat note.

Benchmark indices opened negatively following the trend on SGX Nifty and tracking mixed global cues.

Market participants are tracking FII& DII activity closely.

The BSE Sensex is trading up by 58 points. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading higher by 8 points.

Tech Mahindra and Wipro are among the top gainers today.

IndusInd Bank and Power Grid, on the other hand, are among the top losers today.

The BSE Mid Cap index is up 0.1%. The BSE Small Cap index is trading higher by 0.5%.

Sectoral indices are trading mixed with stocks in the IT, capital goods, and power sectors witnessing most of the buying.

Realty stocks and healthcare stocks, on the other hand, are trading in the red.

Energy and oil & gas companies are in focus today after the government on Thursday hiked the windfall profit tax on the export of diesel to Rs 7 per liter and brought back a tax on jet fuel exports.

However, it slashed the levy on domestically produced crude oil in line with softening rates.

Shares of Adani Transmission and Eicher Motors hit their 52-week highs today.

Gold prices are trading down by 0.3% at Rs 51,436 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading down by 0.9% at Rs 55,923 per kg.

Crude oil prices edged higher today, extending a rally into the third day, as investors weighed hopes for strong fuel demand after a larger-than-expected drawdown in US crude stocks.

Speaking of stock markets, note that benchmark indices have recovered swiftly from the lows touched two months ago.

With every passing day, the Indian stock market is getting closer to its all-time high. If the rally continues, a Sensex all-time high and a Nifty all-time high won't be far away.

Take a look at the chart below to see how the main indices have performed recently.

The question on everyone's mind now is how should they plan their investments.

In news from the automobile sector, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is exploring the possibility of acquiring US carmaker General Motors' factory at Talegaon in Maharashtra.

This development comes after Tata Motors agreed to take over Ford's plant in Gujarat.

Earlier this month, Tata Motors announced the acquisition of the Ford plant for a little less than US$100 m.

According to reports, Mahindra executives made several visits to the Talegaon facility in the past few weeks. The visits came after GM's term sheet with Chinese automaker Great Wall Motors, which was in talks to acquire the plant, expired on 30 June.

Apart from Mahindra, British brand MG Motor to has shown interest in the GM factory.

However, GM may give it a lower priority because MG Motor's investment could face more scrutiny and take more time in India due to its Chinese ownership, one of the reasons why the Great Wall dropped out of the talks.

If this deal does go through, it would be the second case of a homegrown company helping a US automaker exit its investment in India.

M&M may also look at acquiring the plant under the newly formed electric vehicle (EV) subsidiary, which got a nearly US$250-m investment from British Investment Co at a valuation of US$9.1 bn.

M&M is among India's top EV stocks, which had ambitious plans in the EV segment.

M&M's share price continues to rise, irrespective of the global crisis and macroeconomic hurdles.

This is because auto stocks are rising amid weak metal prices, falling oil prices, a new electric vehicles policy by the government, and seasonal demand for products.

Moving on to news from the telecom sector, Canadian pension fund CDPQ is in talks with Vodafone Plc to buy the residual 21% stake the UK telecom major owns in Indus Towers.

Indus is India's largest mobile tower installation company.

According to media reports, both sides have had management meetings and formal due diligence is expected to start as the stake sale process has been revived in recent weeks.

The discussions are still preliminary in nature and there is no guarantee that they will translate into a transaction.

At the current price, Vodafone's 21% stake in Indus is valued at around Rs 112.7 bn.

If Vodafone sells its residual stake in Indus, this will mark the British telco's exit from the passive telecom infrastructure business in India.

How this pans out remains to be seen. Meanwhile, we will keep you updated on the latest developments from this space.

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