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Indian equity markets are likely to make a positive start on Friday, tracking strong cues from global markets amid easing rate-hike fears after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller indicated that a rate hike would not be warranted if underlying inflation continues to moderate. However, traders may remain cautious after foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net sellers, offloading equities worth Rs 2,345.87 crore on Thursday. 

Some of the key factors to be watched:

India-US trade pact to be finalised once US offers preferential rate: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said the details of the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) with the US will be announced once Washington offers preferential terms compared to the country's competitors.

India, Belgium agree to double trade: The report said that India and Belgium have agreed to expand defence cooperation by signing a range of pacts, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Belgian counterpart Bart De Wever identifying trade and investment, critical minerals, high technologies, and semiconductors as key drivers to bolster ties in the face of a fragmented global geopolitical environment.

India-New Zealand trade pact may come into force next month: The report said that the India-New Zealand free trade agreement is likely to come into force next month. On April 27, the two countries signed the free trade agreement (FTA) to boost the two-way commerce in goods and services and promote investments.

Banking system liquidity surplus touches a record high of Rs 9.71 lakh crore on FCNR (B) flows: Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) data has showed that surplus liquidity in the banking system has surged to a record high of Rs 9.71 lakh crore, boosted by flows received under the FCNR (B) scheme of the RBI.

Sebi to review settlement price methodology for derivative contracts after CAS rollout: A month after rolling out the Closing Auction Session (CAS), the market regulator Sebi plans to review the derivative settlement methodology at expiry amid concerns over using the CAS-determined closing price as the settlement basis.

Global front: The US markets ended higher on Thursday, as Treasury yields retreated after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller indicated that a rate hike would not be warranted if underlying inflation continues to ease. Asian markets are trading in green on Friday, following the broadly optimistic cues from Wall Street overnight.

Back home, Indian equity benchmarks surrendered all of their initial gains and ended lower for fourth consecutive day on Thursday, as rising crude oil prices and a significant sell-off in IT stocks weighed on investor sentiment. Besides, profit-booking in the final hour of trade further dragged the benchmarks lower. Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 417.49 points or 0.55% to 76,152.86 and the CNX Nifty was down by 41.00 points or 0.17% to 23,873.45.

Some of the important factors in trade: 

India’s services sector gains momentum with PMI at 54.1 in August: India’s services sector expanded further in the month of August, as demand conditions remained supportive and new business inflows continued to rise. According to the survey report, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 54.1 in August from 53.3 in July.

India records ‘remarkable growth’ of 7.8% in Q1FY27 despite global disruptions: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India recorded a 'remarkable growth' of 7.8 per cent in the first quarter (Q1) of FY27 despite global disruptions, and against all odds, remains the fastest-growing major economy in the world.

India in discussions with several countries to develop critical minerals for domestic needs: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that India is in discussions with several countries, including the US, to establish partnerships and collaborations for processing and development of critical minerals according to domestic requirements.

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