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Indian markets staged a fag-end recovery and closed in the green for the sixth straight session on Wednesday, with gains in IT shares, though losses in auto and FMCG stocks limited the upside. Today, the domestic markets are likely to make optimistic start mirroring firm global cues. Sentiments will get some support as the finance ministry released the fifth instalment of revenue deficit grant of Rs 7,183 crore to 14 states for the current fiscal. Traders may take note of a report that the Confederation of Indian Industry president Sanjiv Bajaj asked the Central government to contemplate reducing the personal income tax rates to spur economic activities. He also said the country's underlying growth drivers are strong and the economy would grow in the range of 7.4 per cent to 8.2 per cent in the next fiscal. Besides, the government plans to facilitate easier financing norms to activities pertaining to the manufacturing and services hubs envisaged under the proposed revamped law for Special Economic Zones (SEZs), also known as Development (Enterprise and Services) Hub Bill, 2022. Meanwhile, SEBI has restructured its advisory committee on market data that recommends policy measures pertaining to securities market data access and privacy. However, there may be some cautiousness as the government data showed that India's foreign direct investment to gross domestic product ratio eased to 2.7% in fiscal year ending March. 31, 2022 from 3.1% in the previous financial year. Insurance companies stocks will be in focus as the insurance regulator has proposed to put limits on expenses of management (EoM) of life insurers, wherein they have said that the expenses of the companies should not exceed an amount computed on the basis of percentages in respect of various segments of business written during a financial year. There will be some buzz in sugar industry stocks as the Cabinet hiked the fair and remunerative price (FRP) of sugarcane for the 2022-23 season, which starts from October, by Rs 15 per quintal to Rs 305, triggering calls from sugar mills for a commensurate rise in the minimum sale price (MSP) of sugar to keep their businesses competitive. Railways stocks will be in limelight as Indian Railways transported 122.14 million tonnes (mt) freight in July, marking an 8.25 per cent increase against the same period last year as it ferries coal to power plants. There will be some result announcements to keep the markets in action.

The US markets ended higher on Wednesday with gains in big technology companies lifting the Nasdaq to near three-month highs as key readings on the services sector and new orders helped calm recession fears. Asian markets are trading mostly in green on Thursday taking cues from a strong rally on Wall Street after robust economic data and upbeat corporate guidance boosted investor appetite.

Back home, in volatile trading session, Indian equity benchmarks erased initial losses and ended in green terrain on Wednesday, amid continuous foreign fund inflows and a largely positive trend in global markets. Markets made a cautious start and traded lower for most part of the day, as traders got anxious with data showing that India’s trade deficit widened to a record $31 billion in July with a sequential decline in exports and somewhat flat imports owing to growing recessionary trends in developed economies and elevated commodity prices. The data released by the commerce ministry showed merchandise exports declined to a five-month low at $35.2 billion in July while imports eased sequentially to $66 billion. Sentiments remained down-beat with a private survey showed growth in India's dominant services industry slowed sharply in July, squeezed by high inflationary pressures and weaker demand, leading to a further fall in business expectations. The S&P Global India Services Purchasing Managers' Index sank to 55.5 in July from 59.2 in June, its lowest since March. Some concerns also came after minister of state for finance Bhagwat K Karad said that the government is not planning to introduce any bill to make amendments to facilitate the privatisation of public sector banks in the ongoing monsoon session. However, markets trimmed all of their losses to end higher as exchange data showed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the capital markets as they bought shares worth Rs 825.18 crore on Tuesday. Some support also came with Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data showing that the country's unemployment rate fell from 7.80 per cent in June to 6.80 per cent in July, the lowest level in the last six months, amid rising agriculture activities during monsoon. Adding to the optimism, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has asserted that there is no collapse of the unit and it is actually finding its natural course. She said the RBI is continuously monitoring the local currency and intervening only if there is volatility. Finally, the BSE Sensex rose 214.17 points or 0.37% to 58,350.53 and the CNX Nifty was up by 42.70 points or 0.25% to 17,388.15.

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