India’s equity benchmarks opened higher on Friday, lifted by government tax cuts, a cooling U.S. labor market and dovish comments from Federal Reserve officials that reinforced expectations of a rate cut this month.
The NSE Nifty 50 was up 0.34% to 24,818.85 and the BSE Sensex gained 0.36% to 81,012.42 as of 9:15 a.m. IST.
Fifteen of the 16 major sectors logged gains at the open.
The broader small-caps and mid-caps rose 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively.
The Nifty 50 and the BSE Sensex rose in the last session, led by auto and consumer stocks, after the Goods and Services Tax Council approved a shift to a two-rate structure and cut levies on everyday goods to spur demand.
Asian markets advanced on the day after Wall Street rose overnight, with softer US labour data and Fed officials’ dovish commentary fuelling rate-cut hopes.
Money markets are now pricing in an almost 100% chance of a rate cut at the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting in two weeks.
Lower U.S. rates typically make emerging markets like India more appealing for global investors.
American Dollar Exchange Rate