Indian Shares Seen Tad Higher At Open

(RTTNews) - Indian shares look set to open a tad higher on Thursday after ending 2025 on a good note. Monthly vehicles sales data from prominent automobile companies and Q3 updates from companies like HUDCO and IREDA may influence trading as the session progresses.

Meanwhile, the Union cabinet has decided to freeze Vodafone Idea's adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues at Dec 31 level of Rs 87,695 crore, with payment rescheduled over 10 years, starting 2031-32.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and Nifty jumped around 0.6 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively on the final trading session of Calendar Year 2025 on Wednesday as investors hunted for bargains after recent weakness.

Metal stocks led the rally after the government announced a three-year safeguard duty of up to 12 percent on select steel imports.

Foreign institutional investors (FII) were net sellers of shares worth Rs 3,597.38 crore on Wednesday while domestic institutional investors net bought shares worth Rs 6,759.64 crore, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.

The 30-share Sensex gained about 1 percent in December and added more than 8 percent over the last 12 months. The broader Nifty50 too added almost 1 percent this month and surged nearly 10 percent since January 2025.

The Indian currency lost 5 percent in 2025, marking its highest depreciation in the last three years, on the back of persistent foreign capital outflows on tariff concerns alongside heightened dollar demand from importers.

Most Asian and commodity markets remain closed today for the New Year holiday. Overnight, U.S. stocks ended lower for a fourth consecutive session in light New Year's Eve trading.

The Dow shed 0.6 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 0.8 percent and the S&P 500 gave up 0.7 percent as minutes from the Federal Reserve's December policy meeting revealed deep divisions among policymakers over the path of interest rates in 2026.

In economic releases, data showed new claims for unemployment benefits fell in holiday week but stayed near a monthslong range.

The major U.S. indexes notched big annual gains after a roller-coaster year dominated by President Donald Trump's tariff uncertainties and a euphoria around AI-linked stocks.

The Nasdaq Composite skyrocketed by 20.4 percent for the year, while the S&P 500 soared by 16.4 percent and the Dow surged by 13.0 percent.

European stocks ended slightly lower on Wednesday, with several markets in the region, including Germany and Switzerland closed for New Year's Eve.

The pan European Stoxx 600 eased 0.1 percent. France's CAC 40 slipped 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 finished marginally lower.