(Reuters) - Indian stocks are set to open higher on Thursday, tracking global equities, after minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's November policy meeting hinted at a possible moderation in the pace of interest rate hikes.
India's NSE stock futures listed on the Singapore exchange were up 0.45% at 18,336 as of 0116 GMT.
A "substantial majority" of Fed policymakers agreed it would "likely soon be appropriate" to slow the pace of rate hikes, the minutes showed.
On Wall Street, all three major indexes closed higher, while the U.S. dollar weakened and treasury yields retreated. The MSCI Asia ex-Japan index rose 0.84%.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex extended its winning streak for the second session in a row on Wednesday, rising 0.15% to 61,510.58, while the NSE Nifty 50 index advanced 0.13% to 18,267.25.
Indian markets may also get support from falling oil prices after Group of Seven (G7) nations considered a price cap on Russian oil above the current market level.
Foreign institutional investors sold a net of 7.90 billion Indian rupees ($96.80 million) worth of equities on Wednesday, while domestic investors bought 4.14 billion Indian rupees $50.73 million) worth of shares, per provisional NSE data.
Stocks To Watch:
** Biocon: Enters into a commercialisation agreement with European pharmaceutical company Zentiva for treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity.
** Mahindra and Mahindra Financial Services: LIC increased its stake from 5.011% to 7.022%.
** Zee Entertainment: Company said the petition filed against it by Invesco and OFI before the National Company Law Tribunal has been dismissed.
** Shoppers Stop: Invested 49.5 million Indian rupees in Global SS Beauty Brands Ltd, by way of subscription to rights issue of 4,95,000 shares.
** IIFL Wealth Management: Public shareholders General Atlantic Singapore Fund and FIH Mauritius Investments completed the sale of 22.2 million shares to BC Asia Investments X. ($1 = 81.6120 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru and Akansha Victor; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)