Expect positive opening; Keep eye on Gyan Sangam

The Indian equity market continued its northward journey for the third consecutive session on Thursday, taking the Nifty to one-month closing high, on account of hopes that NDA government will be able to get some key bills including GST passed in Parliament. The Sensex rallied 364.01 points or 1.50% quoting 24606.99, taking the total to an addition of 1605-points in three sessions. The Nifty inched closer to 7500 level and closed 106.75 points up or 1.45% at 7475.60. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.58%. The BSE Small-Cap index rose 1.35%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday, with energy shares leading the way as oil prices stabilized after almost two years of steep declines. Investors must keep an eye on Friday's jobs data. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 44.58 points, or 0.3% to 16,943.90 and the S&P 500 index edged up 6.95 points, or 0.4% to 1,993.40. The Nasdaq composite index added 4 points, or 0.1% to 4,707.42.

The price of WTI crude wavered between small gains and losses, finally closing down 9 cents at USD 34.57 a barrel in New York. Brent crude added 14 cents quoting USD 37.07 a barrel in London.

European markets finished in the red on Thursday, as traders are avoiding taking big positions ahead of a key U.S. jobs report. The Stoxx 600 index fell 0.5% snapping a five-session run of gains during which it climbed nearly 6.5%. Germany's DAX 30 edged lower by 0.25% to 9,752; while France's CAC 40 inched down by 0.20% to 4,416. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 slid 0.3% to 6,130.

Asian shares look set to post a third straight week of gains on Friday as investors are also cautious ahead of US's jobs data. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 traded flatly; while South Korea’s Kospi index was lower by 0.29%. The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.29%; and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index also advanced 0.56%. Chinese markets oscillated between gains and losses, with the Shanghai composite trading flatly.

While on domestic front, A SGX Nifty 50 index future for March series traded up 32 points at 7,473. Indian markets are likely to open in the green. PSU banking will remain in focus as the head of Public Sector banks will meet the Finance Minister and top government officials to discuss the issue of rising bad loans in the two day conclave known as Gyan Sangam 2.0 beginning today, which is expected to be a progress report as against Gyan Sangam 1.0 last year which was about building a roadmap.