(Reuters) - Indian shares may open higher on Monday, after rising for two consecutive weeks, tracking gains in broader Asia and a fall in oil prices.
India's NSE stock futures, listed on the Singapore exchange, were 0.92% higher as of 0242 GMT. The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.8%.
The NSE Nifty 50 index advanced 0.28% to close at 17,786.80 on Friday, and the S&P BSE Sensex ended 0.34% higher at 59,959.85, with the indexes finishing a truncated week over 1% higher.
For the month as of last close, they have added more than 4% each on the back of strong corporate earnings reports and hopes of a less-hawkish stance from major central banks.
Oil prices fell on Monday on concerns that widening COVID-19 curbs in China will curtail demand, while India, the world's third-biggest importer of oil, benefits from a slide in prices as it brings down imported inflation. [O/R]
Investors this week will be looking for the outcome of policy meetings of the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England, with a surprise meet of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) also on the cards.
The RBI has scheduled an additional meeting of its policy-setting committee for Nov. 3 to potentially discuss its response to the government on its failure to stick to its inflation target for three quarters in a row.
On the earnings front, Tata Steel and telecom major Bharti Airtel, Nifty 50 components, are expected to report their quarterly results later in the day.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors bought a net 15.69 billion Indian rupees ($190.73 million) worth of equities on Friday, while domestic investors sold 6.13 billion rupees of shares, as per provisional data available with the National Stock Exchange.
Stocks to watch:
** Sugar stocks after India, the world's biggest sugar producer, extended restrictions for export by one year through October 2023, the government said in a notification late on Friday.
** Metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta Ltd reported a 60.8% slump in quarterly profit on Friday, on cooling global commodity prices and a surge in fuel and power expenses.
** Tata Power Company Ltd posted a 94.1% jump in second-quarter profit on Friday, with energy consumption remaining robust as economic activity ramped up following the pandemic lockdowns.
** Generic drugmaker Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd reported a 12.2% rise in second-quarter profit on Friday, helped by the launch of the generic version of a popular cancer drug in its key North American market.