Sensex, Nifty Likely To Open Higher Today; Earnings In Focus

Domestic stock markets are likely to start Wednesday's session on a positive note following two days of losses amid gains in Asian peers. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) Nifty futures - an early indicator of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty index - rose as much as 36.5 points to touch 12,227.50 ahead of the opening of Indian markets. At 8:30 am, the SGX Nifty futures were up 36.00 points - or 0.30 per cent - at 12,227.00.

Analysts will closely monitor financial results by large cap companies for cues in the near term.

Asian Paints, Axis Bank and Larsen & Toubro will report their earnings for the quarter ended December 31 later in the day.

Equities in other Asian markets steadied on Wednesday as investors took stock of the spread of a new strain of coronavirus from China and weighed the possible consequences of a global pandemic.

Fears of contagion, particularly as millions travel for Lunar New Year festivities, knocked stocks from record levels the previous day as investors swapped them for safer assets.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was last seen trading 0.52 per cent higher after a flat start. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.61 per cent at the time after opening 0.1 per cent down.

On Tuesday, the S&P BSE Sensex index had ended 205.10 points - or 0.49 per cent - lower at 41,323.81 and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark settled at 12,169.85, down 54.70 points - or 0.45 per cent - from the previous close.