Indian shares set for higher open as oil eases

Indian shares are poised for a higher opening on Thursday, as oil prices decline amid hopes that Iran and Qatar's discussions could resolve the critical Strait of Hormuz issue, according to the wire material. The Nifty 50 futures stood at 24,360.50 points by 8:12 a.m. IST on Thursday, suggesting a bullish start for the Nifty 50, which had closed at 24,207.75 on the previous day.

Brent crude slipped 0.5% to $87.50 a barrel after Iran reported cooperation with Oman to finalize the Strait of Hormuz agreement, alleviating fears of prolonged disruptions to Middle Eastern oil supplies. The MSCI's Asia-Pacific index, excluding Japan, climbed 0.7%, propelled by technology stocks. Nvidia reported quarterly earnings that more than doubled, surpassing Wall Street's expectations and boosting sector sentiment.

However, global economic conditions remain complex. The U.S. annual inflation rate remained unchanged in July, persisting above the Federal Reserve's 2% target for the 65th consecutive month, potentially fueling speculation on the central bank's future policy actions. On Wednesday, domestic indices Nifty and Sensex dipped 0.5% and 0.2%, driven by IT and Reliance sectors, while heightened sell-offs during the final auction.

Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, founder and CEO of HST Wealth, cautioned that the Sensex's monthly expiry on Thursday might introduce additional trading adjustments, potentially affecting the opening trend's reliability. Foreign portfolio investors were net buyers in Indian markets for the third consecutive session on Wednesday, purchasing a total of 5.03 billion rupees ($52.72 million).

Domestic institutional investors also bought shares worth 64.25 billion rupees, per NSE's preliminary data. In August, foreign investors had invested $2.85 billion in Indian stocks, marking the highest inflow since September 2024, as per data from the National Securities Depository.