The Indian benchmark indices opened with mild gains on the back of strong global cues, driven by growing expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate cut next week. Sensex was up 114 points or 0.14 per cent at 81,663, and Nifty was up 39 points or 0.16 per cent at 25,045 in the early trade today. The broadcap indices outperformed benchmark indices, as Nifty Midcap 100 inched up by 0.43 per cent, and the Nifty Small Cap 100 moved up 0.36 per cent. Among sectoral indices, Nifty Auto, the top gainer, jumped 1.01 per cent. Nifty IT and Nifty Metal were the other major gainers. Nifty FMCG was the top loser.
US markets surged to fresh records overnight as jobless claims spiked to a four-year high of 263,000, cementing expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts despite August inflation accelerating to 2.9 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1.36 per cent, while the Nasdaq advanced by 0.72 per cent and the S&P 500 gained 0.85 per cent.
Most of the Asian markets made strong gains during the morning session. While China’s Shanghai index advanced 0.24 per cent, and Shenzhen added 0.15 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.91 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 1.42 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi inched up 1.15 per cent.