India’s stock benchmarks, trading just shy of record levels, are set to open higher on Friday, as hopes around a lowering of global trade tensions and a potential rebound in domestic corporate earnings aided sentiment.
Gift Nifty futures were trading at 26,026 points as of 7:45 a.m. IST, indicating that the benchmark Nifty 50 will open above Thursday’s one-year high close of 25,891.4.
Both Nifty and Sensex indexes have gained about 3% in the past six sessions and are trading about 1.5% below record high levels, aided by optimism over an imminent India-US trade deal, robust earnings from key sectoral leaders and sustained festive season demand.
However, analysts said profit booking across sectors is possible after the strong recent rally, even as the benchmarks inch towards record high levels.
“The recent price action indicates the likelihood of a short-term consolidation phase after the sharp upmove,” said Ajit Mishra, senior vice president of research at Religare Broking, adding that “the Nifty 50 still retains the potential to retest its record highs soon.”
Meanwhile, Indian refiners are poised to sharply curtail imports of Russian oil to comply with new US sanctions.
Other Asian markets opened higher, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index rising 0.5%.
Wall Street equities closed higher overnight after the White House confirmed US President Donald Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea next week.
Oil prices eased on the day after a 5% surge in the previous session due to fresh US sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies over the war in Ukraine, which fuelled supply concerns.
Foreign institutional investors turned net sellers of Indian shares on Thursday, with outflows of 11.66 billion rupees ($132.7 million).
Domestic institutional investors purchased equities worth 38.94 billion rupees, on a net basis.
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