Indian Shares Likely To Open Higher; Tata Technologies Likely To Make Strong Debut

(RTTNews) - Higher GIFT Nifty points to a positive start for stocks in the Indian market on Thursday. The session will mark the debut of Tata Technologies, Gandhar Oil and Fedbank Financial Services.

The IPO from the company was subscribed 69.43 times. Gandhar Oil received a good response as well, while Fedbank Financial Services IPO got a muted response from investors.

Data on India's GDP for the second-quarter is due later today. A Reuters poll says the economy likely grew at 6.8% in the July-September quarter, compared to a year ago. The Reserve Bank of India has projected a 6.5% growth for the quarter.

Asian stocks are broadly lower today amid concerns about slowing growth in China. Data showed China's factory activity unexpectedly weakened for a second straight month in November. While the manufacturing purchasing managers' index fell slightly to 49.4, the non-manufacturing managers' index slipped to 50.2 from 50.6.

On Wednesday, the Indian market ended on a buoyant note with technology stocks leading the rally. Optimism the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates by March next year helped underpin sentiment.

The BSE benchmark Sensex ended with a gain of 727.71 points or 1.1% at 66,901.91, while the broader Nifty50 index of the National Stock Exchange, which moved past the 20k mark for the first time in about seven months, settled with a gain of 206.90 points or 1.04% at 20,096.60.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Wednesday. Despite the choppy trading on the day, the Dow inched up to its best closing level in over three months.

While the Dow crept up marginally, the Nasdaq slipped 0.2% and the S&P 500 edged down 0.1%.

Traders looked ahead to the release of key inflation readings on Thursday. The Commerce Department's report on personal income and spending includes readings on inflation said to be preferred by the Fed and could impact on the outlook for interest rates.