Indian shares are seen opening higher on Monday, tracking firm Asian cues as worries about Greece eased and the government and pro-Moscow rebels in eastern Ukraine said they would pull back heavy weapons from the frontline. Oil prices are little changed, with Brent crude futures hovering near $60 a barrel as key producer Libya resumed oil exports from the eastern port of Zueitina after an almost year-long suspension.
The benchmark index S&P BSE Sensex rose half a percent to close at 29,357.17 last week and the broader CNX Nifty index gained 0.3 percent to finish at 8,828.20 as Greek debt worries tempered optimism that the Modi government will accelerate economic reforms in the coming Union Budget.
In the run-up to the crucial budget session of Parliament beginning later today, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu sought help of Congress president Sonia Gandhi in an apparent attempt to ensure passage of six bills that would replace ordinances.
Meanwhile, the stock exchanges BSE and NSE said on Friday that markets will be open for regular hours on Saturday, when Finance Minister Arun Jaitley would unveil the Modi government's first full-year budget for the fiscal year starting in April.
In corporate news, realty major DLF said it plans to divest around 50 percent stake each in four new housing projects to private equity firms to raise over Rs 3,000 crore.
The outflow of gas and crude oil from an ONGC well at Chinnapandraka village in Kruttivennu mandal of Krishna district on Sunday evening has damaged crop in more than hundred acres.
The government has sold 15 coal blocks so far in the auction that started on February 14, generating an estimated over Rs 1 lakh crore for respective states.
On Wall Street, stocks rose on Friday after Eurozone creditors agreed to a four-month extension of Greece's bailout agreement, with Greece agreeing not to roll back austerity measures and draw up by Monday a list of financial reforms it was prepared to make by the end of April. The Dow rose 0.9 percent and the S&P 500 gained 0.6 percent to close at fresh record highs, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.6 percent to reach its best level since early 2000.
The European markets ended mixed on Friday as investors awaited developments on Greek debt negotiations amid hopes that a deal will eventually be reached. The German DAX and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 both rose by 0.4 percent, but France's CAC 40 edged down marginally.
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