Indian shares opened marginally higher on Thursday, as gains in autos, pharma and energy were capped by fears about the new Omicron coronavirus variant after the United States became the latest country to report a case.
The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.35% at 17,227.50 by 0358 GMT, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.31% to 57,864.75.
Shares of auto makers rose, led by Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, up 2.7%, after the company posted a 7% jump year-on-year in passenger vehicle sales in November on Wednesday.
The Nifty Auto index was up about 0.76% in early trade
The Nifty pharma index and the Nifty energy index were top performers in early trade, up about 0.8% each.
Shares of direct to home service provider Dish TV India Ltd was up 4.8%, after a media report that telecom operator Bharti Airtel was in early talks to acquire a majority stake in the company. Airtel stock fell about 0.12%.
Asian shares edged higher in choppy trading, helped by advances in Chinese real estate shares, though fears about Omicron capped gains regionally.