Indian markets open in green before RBI's policy announcement and in anticipation of possible tax relief for FPI's

The NSE Nifty 50 index was opened at 23,478.95, up 62.40 points or 0.27 per cent, while the BSE Sensex gained 269.93 points or 0.36 per cent to open at 74,629.94.

Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market expert, told ANI that reports of possible tax relief for foreign portfolio investors investing in Indian government bonds have improved sentiment.

"For India, there is talk of relief for FIIs investing in Indian government bonds, with an ordinance reportedly offering tax relief for the same," he said.

Investors are also closely monitoring the RBI's policy decision scheduled to be announced at 10 a.m.

Bagga said markets are expecting a pause in interest rates along with a relatively hawkish policy tone.

"The RBI MPC meet outcome will be spelt out at 10 am, with a pause on rates, hawkish tone, higher inflation forecast and perhaps a lower GDP forecast on the anvil," he added.

He also said markets will closely watch for any measures related to foreign exchange management and support.

Sectorally, most indices on the NSE were trading in the green. Nifty Media emerged as one of the top gainers, rising 1.53 per cent. Nifty Realty gained 0.88 per cent, while Nifty Pharma advanced 0.57 per cent and Nifty IT rose 0.56 per cent. Nifty Auto traded higher by 0.45 per cent, while Nifty FMCG gained 0.16 per cent and Nifty PSU Bank was up 0.16 per cent.

Only Nifty Metal and Nifty Private Bank were trading in negative territory at the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, Brent crude oil prices rose marginally by 0.36 per cent to USD 95.37 per barrel.

Asian markets largely remained under pressure. Japan's Nikkei 225 index declined 1.61 per cent to 66,385, while Singapore's Straits Times fell 0.28 per cent to 5,053. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was down 0.86 per cent, Taiwan's Weighted Index declined 1.12 per cent to 45,196, and South Korea's KOSPI index fell sharply by 4.83 per cent to 8,222. (ANI)