Sensex opens above 56000 as Asian stocks surge, US declines while FTSE 100 closes ahead

Stocks at Wall Street fell as July retail sales declined and concerns about slowing economic growth intensified

An office worker viewing a graph showing movement in the FTSE 100 Index (PA)

India’s Sensex opened above 56000 for the first time on Wednesday, gaining 0.43%, while NSE Nifty 50 zoomed to close in on 16,700, gaining more than 0.41%.

Shares in Asia-Pacific were higher in Wednesday morning trade as investors reacted to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s interest rate decision. Japan, Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese stocks are all trading in the green with gains of over half a per cent.

Stocks at Wall Street fell on Tuesday as July retail sales declined and concerns about slowing global economic growth intensified. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 282 points, or 0.8 per cent to 35,343. The S&P 500 shed 0.7 per cent to 4,448 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.9 per cent to close at 14,656.

London’s FTSE 100 closed 0.3 per cent higher, helped by gains in heavyweight energy and healthcare stocks, while strong earnings from BHP group bolstered sentiments.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended 0.3 per cent higher, after falling as much as 0.5 per cent, helped by oil majors BP and Royal Dutch Shell as crude prices recouped early losses.