Sensex, Nifty Set To Extend Gains Amid Global Rally

(RTTNews) - Indian shares may follow global peers higher on Wednesday as strong U.S. corporate earnings and the expected resumption of Russian gas supply to Europe helped boost investor sentiment.

There is more good news as the government reduced the windfall tax on diesel and aviation fuel shipments by Rs 2 a liter, and scrapped completely a Rs 6-per-liter levy on gasoline exports.

On the earnings front, FMCG major Hindustan Unilever beat estimates with a 13 percent uptick in profits year-on-year for the June 2022 quarter, while HDFC Life's Q1 profit jumped 21 percent.

Wipro and IndusInd Bank are among the prominent companies due to report their financial results today.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and the Nifty both rose around half a percent each on Tuesday while the rupee breached the 80-mark against the dollar for the first time before closing 6 paise higher at 79.92 following RBI intervention.

Asian markets surged, with key benchmark indexes in Australia, Hong Kong and Japan rising around 2 percent.

The dollar held near two-week lows as the euro extended its overnight bounce on relief Europe might be able to avoid the worst fears concerning energy shortages.

Oil prices fell slightly in early Asian trade after a three-day rally. Gold dipped on higher bond yields ahead of the BoJ and ECB policy meetings.

U.S. stocks rose sharply overnight as more companies reported better-than-expected earnings, offsetting worries about inflation and interest-rate hikes.

The Dow surged 2.4 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 3.1 percent and the S&P 500 spiked 2.8 percent despite signs the housing market is slowing from its torrid pace.

European stocks extended gains for a third straight session on Tuesday despite reports that a 50-bps rate hike is on the cards at the upcoming ECB policy meeting.

The pan European Stoxx 600 advanced 1.4 percent. The German DAX gained 2.7 percent, France's CAC 40 index surged 1.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 1 percent.