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Finance Minister P. Chidambaram will present one of the most highly anticipated Indian budgets of recent years, a blueprint for austerity that forms the centerpiece of India's efforts to stave off a damaging credit ratings downgrade. The anouncments made today will be dictating the market moves in noon deals.
Overnight, U.S. stocks rallied for a second straight day on Wednesday as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke reaffirmed his commitment to the Fed's stimulus efforts, while the euro climbed after solid demand at an auction of Italian government debt.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 1.27 percent, at 14,076. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .was up 1.27 percent, at 1,516. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 1.04 percent, at 3,162.
In Asia, all the markets were in the green with Japan's Nikkei being the top gainer. The index gained 1.7 percent after a two-day losing run on Thursday after a well-bid Italian debt auction eased concerns that an inconclusive election could reignite the euro zone debt crisis.
Kospi Composite, Jakarta Composite, Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng up 0.2-1 percent were the other gainers.
Among stocks watch out for Jubilant Life as the US health regulator has issued a warning letter for violation of manufacturing norms at its facility in Canada.
Country's second largest private lender, HDFC Bank will be in spotlight as the bank hit the foreign debt markets with a USD 500-million bond issue, according to merchant bankers.
