Indian stocks are expected to open higher on Monday, tracking positive sentiment from Asian peers, after weaker-than-expected US jobs data renewed bets that the Federal Reserve will likely cut rates this year.
The GIFT Nifty was trading at 22,678.50, indicating that the NSE Nifty 50 will open above its Friday close of 22,475.85.
Asian markets opened higher, benefiting from gains on Wall Street on Friday after US jobs data came in weaker than expected, easing fears of a prolonged regime of high interest rates .
Rising U.S. interest rates make stock investments in emerging markets such as India unattractive to foreign investors, as higher U.S. bond yields provide safety compared to riskier assets.
OCBC analysts said in a note that global risk sentiment has rebounded, mainly due to weaker-than-expected US jobs data in April.
Market reaction to results from Indian jeweler Titan Company, which missed its March quarter profit target due to higher discounts and gold prices, will be in focus .
Investors are also interested in shares of Britannia Industries after the cookie maker beat its fourth-quarter profit estimates after market hours Friday.
Investors will be watching earnings of key companies due this week, such as Tata Motors, Asian Paints, construction giant Larsen and Toubro, drugmakers Cipla and Dr Reddy’s Labs.
Foreign institutional investors sold Indian stocks worth 23.92 billion rupees ($286.74 million) on Friday, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth a net 6.91 billion rupees , according to preliminary data from the National Stock Exchange.
ACTIONS TO MONITOR:
1. Kotak Mahindra Bank: The Indian private lender said the central bank’s order impacted its franchise and reputation after posting fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts’ expectations. 2. Aurobindo Pharma: The US Food and Drug Administration ended the inspection of the Rajasthan unit with seven observations. 3. Paytm: The digital payments company said over the weekend that Chairman Bhavesh Gupta would resign from the company.
($1 = 83.4210 Indian rupees)
