The Indian market may extend its previous session's gains on Wednesday after Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou won a parliamentary confidence vote, a key step in Papandreou's efforts to win support for additional austerity measures and avoid a debt default. A strong close on Wall Street overnight and firm Asian cues this morning could also help improve sentiment.
Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department on Tuesday predicted a below normal monsoon this year and said the crucial southwest monsoon will gain momentum only by the middle of July. According to the weather office, the overall rainfall during the June-September period is likely to be "below normal" at 95 percent of the long period average of the last 50 years with a model error of plus or minus 4 percent.
The benchmark indexes Sensex and the Nifty pared early gains to end up about 0.3 percent each on Tuesday amid encouraging cues from the other Asian and European markets on easing concerns over Greece's debt crisis.
On Wall Street, stocks moved sharply higher overnight with traders expressing optimism about the outcome of a crucial confidence vote in Greece. Positive reaction to a report on home sales and bargain hunting following recent sharp losses also contributed to the surge. The Dow rose 0.9 percent, the Nasdaq climbed 2.2 percent and the S&P 500 closed up 1.3 percent.
Crude oil prices edged higher on Tuesday with a weak U.S. dollar and expectations that George Papandreou's cabinet in Greece would survive a confidence vote. Light sweet crude for August delivery ended up 54 cents at $94.17 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.