Due in part to the US Federal Reserve’s decision to raise its benchmark lending rate, Indian stocks and the rupee are anticipated to start the day slightly higher.
Both the Nifty and Sensex had increased on Wednesday, driven by gains in the market giants Reliance Industries and Larsen & Toubro due to reports of Qatar Sovereign fund interest in their retail arm.
In line with predictions, the Fed increased the policy rate by 25 basis points while keeping the possibility of further rate hikes open. In a press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated that raising interest rates at the September meeting was “certainly possible” if the data called for it.
In an effort to reduce inflation, which reached a 40-year high in 2022, the Fed launched the most severe tightening campaign since the 1980s at the beginning of last year. Despite pausing rate increases last month to evaluate the effects of earlier decisions, policymakers nevertheless hinted at the time that two additional increases would likely be appropriate by the end of the year.
