India equity benchmarks set to open higher as upbeat results lift sentiment

India’s stock benchmarks are poised to open higher on Thursday, lifted by strong earnings from Grasim Industries, Sun Pharma and Britannia Industries, though analysts expect consolidation to continue after October’s sharp rally.

Gift Nifty futures were trading at 25,727.5 points as of 7:56 a.m. IST, indicating that Nifty 50 will open above Tuesday’s close of 25,597.65.

Indian markets were closed for a local holiday on Wednesday.

Both the benchmarks lost about 0.6% each in the last session dragged down by profit booking, mostly in IT stocks, as mixed signals from U.S. Federal Reserve officials clouded expectations of a December rate cut.

After rising 4.5% in October, the benchmarks have lost 0.5% so far this week, with analysts expecting further consolidation.

Meanwhile, upbeat September-quarter earnings from benchmark constituents such as Grasim Industries and Sun Pharma boosted sentiment.

Textiles-to-paints firm Grasim reported higher profit, driven by strong demand for its chemical products, while robust domestic sales helped drugmaker Sun Pharma post a better-than-expected quarterly profit.

Among non-index stocks, biscuit maker Britannia Industries posted a 23% rise in second-quarter profit on higher year-on-year prices and steady sales volumes.

Focus will also be on Fortis Healthcare, Paytm, GE Vernova T&D India and Siemens Energy India after their inclusion in the MSCI Global Standard index in the November rejig, a move likely to spur higher inflows into these stocks.

Meanwhile, Tata Elxsi and Container Corp of India could see a decline following their exclusion from the MSCI index.

Other Asian markets rose, tracking an overnight rise in Wall Street equities on better-than-expected U.S. economic data.