BENGALURU, July 3 (Reuters) – Indian shares were set to extend gains on Friday after a softer U.S. jobs report eased worries about a near-term interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve and improved risk appetite for emerging markets.
GIFT Nifty futures were at 24,414, as of 7:43 a.m. IST, indicating the Nifty 50 could open above Thursday’s close of 24,175.7.
U.S. job growth slowed sharply in June and payroll gains for the prior two months were revised lower, pointing to a cooling labour market and prompting financial markets to dial back expectations for a near-term rate hike.
Lower U.S. interest rates encourage capital flows to emerging markets like India.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold Indian shares worth 3.12 billion rupees ($32.71 million) on Thursday, as per provisional data. They have offloaded a record $29.46 billion worth of shares so far this year.
Domestic institutional investors remained buyers for an eighth straight session on Thursday.
The benchmark Nifty 50 and the Sensex rose 1.3% in the last two sessions, mainly supported by a drop in crude oil prices.
STOCKS TO WATCH
** Non-bank lender Bajaj Finance says new loans booked during the June quarter rose 20% from last year, while assets under management grew 24%
** Punjab National Bank reports 11.7% growth in domestic advances during April-June, while deposits rose 8.6%
** D-Mart operator Avenue Supermarts posts 15.1% growth in standalone revenue for the first quarter
** Consumer goods maker Marico expects consolidated first-quarter revenue to grow in low-twenties percentage range, helped by robust performance across its core, digital and international businesses
($1 = 95.3900 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
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