India equity benchmarks set to open higher after four-session drop

India’s stock benchmarks are poised to open marginally higher on Friday, after four straight sessions of losses on renewed U.S. tariff concerns, as investors await a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the legality of the levies later in the day.

The Gift Nifty futures were trading at 25,998.50 points as of 8:02 a.m. IST, indicating that the Nifty 50would open above Thursday’s close of 25,876.85.

Nifty and Sensex have lost 1.7% and 1.8%, respectively, in the last four sessions, after U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at further raising tariffs on Indian goods over New Delhi’s purchase of Russian crude.

The U.S. has already imposed tariffs of up to 50% on imports from India, the world’s second-largest buyer of Russian oil, while New Delhi seeks to finalise a long-awaited trade deal with Washington.

Investors are waiting for a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the legality of Trump’s tariffs. If deemed “illegal”, the U.S. government could be forced to refund nearly $150 billion to importers.

Meanwhile, back home, the benchmarks could find support after a sustained four-session decline, with analysts expecting buying interest around current levels.

However, a resolution of the trade uncertainty and strength in domestic corporate earnings are crucial for a sustained upmove, analysts said.

Foreign portfolio investors have offloaded about $900 million worth of Indian shares in January so far, after record outflows of $19 billion in 2025.