(Reuters) Indian shares were set to open lower on Friday on weak global cues, after the European Central Bank hiked rates and concerns over banking sector in the U.S. resurfaced with the collapse of PacWest Bancorp.
India's NSE stock futures listed on the Singapore exchange were down 0.17% at 18,253.50, as of 7:57 a.m. IST.
The Nifty 50 and Sensex have added over 1% this week so far, helped by strong quarterly results, the return of foreign institutional investors, and a fall in oil prices.
Wall Street equities closed lower overnight, dragged by banking stocks which reeled from the collapse of another major regional bank PacWest Bancorp over the weekend.
A 25 basis-point-rates hike by the ECB, as well as the commitment to raise key interest rates further to tame inflation triggered concerns over global growth. Asian markets remained subdued.
Meanwhile, brent crude futures hovered around $73 per barrel, on global demand concerns. Both Brent and WTI crude have lost nearly 10% since the start of the week.
The fall in oil prices is a positive for importers of the commodity like India, where crude constitutes a significant share of the country's import bill.
Aiding the sentiment is also the return of the foreign buying in domestic equities. Foreign institutional investors purchased Indian shares for the sixth session in a row on Thursday, adding equities worth 14.15 billion Indian rupees ($173.29 million).
Stocks to watch
** Hero MotoCorp Ltd: Co reports higher-than-expected rise in net profit in Q4 on higher vehicle sales.
** Tata Power Company Ltd: Co posts 55% profit jump in March quarter on strong distribution growth.
** TVS Motor Company Ltd: Co reports 50% jump in Q4 profit, supported by rise in scooter demand.
** United Breweries Ltd: Co reports slide in Q4 profit on higher input costs. ($1 = 81.6540 Indian rupees)