INDIA STOCKS-Indian shares set to open higher as strong earnings lift mood

BENGALURU, April 24 (Reuters) - Indian shares were set to open higher on Monday as improved quarterly results from heavyweights Reliance Industries Ltd and ICICI Bank Ltd eased some concerns over a lacklustre start to the earnings season. India's NSE stock futures listed on the Singapore exchange were up 0.29% at 17,690 as of 8:10 a.m. IST. Global equities were subdued as investors digest corporate earnings and rising odds of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike on May 3. The focus in domestic equities would remain on earnings for the coming week, said two analysts.

India's most valuable company, Reliance Industries reported 19% growth in fourth-quarter profit, aided by the strong performance in oil-to-chemicals (O2C) segment, post market hours on Friday. Private lender ICICI Bank posted a 30% jump in net profit in the March quarter, helped by improved net interest income and loan growth.

The strong earnings of the two companies, which account for nearly 20% of the total weightage in Nifty 50, could improve the sentiment soured by the weak earnings and outlook of top information technology companies, analysts added.

The benchmark Nifty 50 snapped a three-week winning streak on Friday, dragged by IT stocks. Foreign institutional investors extended their selling streak for five straight sessions on Friday, offloading 21.17 billion rupees ($258.1 million) of shares.

IndusInd Bank Ltd, Bajaj Auto Ltd , Bajaj Finance Ltd , Maruti Suzuki Ltd , Hindustan Unilever Ltd , Axis Bank Ltd , ACC Ltd , Wipro Ltd , Ultratech Cement Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd are among the companies due to report their quarterly numbers this week.

Stocks to Watch:

** Yes Bank Ltd : Lender's net profit slumps 45% in the March quarter on higher provisions.
** Tejas Networks Ltd : Co's consolidated loss after tax narrows in Q4.
** HDFC Asset Management Co Ltd : Firm gets market regulator SEBI's final approval to change control of company.
** Earnings on Monday: IndusInd Bank Ltd, Century Textiles & Industries Ltd, Persistent Systems Ltd, Mahindra Logistics Ltd, Bank of Maharashtra Ltd, Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Ltd, NELCO Ltd, Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd, IIFL Securities Ltd.

($1 = 82.0300 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil)

Reuters

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INDIA STOCKS-Indian shares set to open higher as strong earnings lift mood

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