Indian stocks traded higher on Wednesday, led by technology and consumer stocks and keeping pace with other Asian stocks, as investors awaited national earnings reports to gauge corporate health.
The NSE Nifty 50 Index was up 0.23% at 18,244.45 by 0350 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex was up 0.24% at 61,333.74, adding to gains seen in the past two sessions. The market was closed on Tuesday for a holiday.
Meanwhile, the data showed that foreign institutional investors were net buyers of shares for eight consecutive days.
On Monday they bought net shares worth 19.49 billion Indian rupees ($239.52 million), while domestic investors sold 8.44 billion rupees worth of shares, according to provisional data available on the National Stock Exchange.
Investors are now focusing on a key US inflation reading due out on Thursday, which is expected to show a decline in consumer prices and provide clues to the US Federal Reserve’s rate outlook. USA
In domestic trade, Nifty’s FMCG and TI indices were among the best performing sectors, adding 0.53% and 0.33%, respectively.
Tata Motors Ltd and Petronet LNG Ltd rose 0.3% each, while Lupine Ltd dipped 1.4%, before its quarterly results. In broader Asia, stocks rose on Wednesday as investors awaited US inflation data, as well as US midterm election results that could mean a power shift in Washington.
($1 = 81.3700 Indian rupees)