Feb 23 (Reuters) – Indian shares are set to open higher on Monday, after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down levies imposed by President Donald Trump, prompting him to raise a temporary tariff on U.S. imports to 15% from 10%.
The Gift Nifty futures were trading at 25,744.5 points as of 7:51 a.m. IST, indicating the benchmark Nifty 50 will open above Friday’s close of 25,571.25.
U.S. Supreme Court on Friday struck down Trump’s sweeping tariffs, which he had pursued under a law intended for use in national emergencies, in a ruling with significant implications for global trade and economy.
On Saturday, Trump said that he will raise the temporary tariff on U.S. imports from all countries from 10% to 15%, the maximum allowed under the law.
Given the court ruling and the uncertainty over tariffs following the judgment, India has delayed plans to send a trade delegation to Washington this week, Reuters reported, citing a source in the trade ministry.
The Indian delegation was scheduled to depart on Sunday to finalise an interim trade deal, after both countries agreed to a framework under which U.S. tariffs on Indian goods would be reduced to 18%, while India committed to purchasing $500 billion worth of U.S. items over five years.
Domestic equities will get off to a positive start, as sentiment is strengthened by supportive trade developments, with export-oriented sectors likely to see a bounce, two analysts said.
The Nifty and Sensex logged modest rise last week, as optimism around earnings recovery drove banks higher, while AI disruption worries and U.S.-Iran tensions capped the upside. [.BO]
Other Asian markets rose 1.1%, while oil prices eased ahead of another round of talks between the U.S. and Iran in Geneva on Thursday. [MKTS/GLOB] [O/R]
Among individual stocks, IDFC First Bank could drop after the lender said it was investigating a suspected fraud of $65 million by some employees involving accounts of local government entities.
STOCKS TO WATCH
** RailTel receives a letter of intent in a consortium with Ashoka Buildcon for a multi-year modernisation project in Maharashtra worth 11.36 billion rupees ($125.2 million)
** U.S. drug regulator classifies a unit of Cipla’s supply partner, Pharmathen Internation, as “official action indication” following an inspection in Greece
** Vikram Solar signs a 20 billion-rupee pact with Jupiter International to procure 2 GW of TopCon and PERC solar cells
($1 = 90.7680 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy)