India's GIFT Nifty was up 0.24% at 19,528.50 as of 8:05 a.m. IST, over 80 points above the benchmark Nifty 50's Wednesday close of 19,443.50.

Most Wall Street equities rose overnight, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite logging their longest winning streak in two years. Asian markets advanced, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index adding 0.22%. [MKTS/GLOB]

Brent crude futures fell more than 2% on Wednesday to $79.20 per barrel, their lowest since mid-July, on concerns over waning demand in China.

Brent crude hovered around $80 per barrel in Asia hours. A fall in oil prices is positive for importers of the commodity, like India. [O/R]

Analysts said the benchmark Nifty 50 could consolidate near the current levels for a few sessions after a recovery after the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate pause on Nov. 1.

The Nifty 50 rose in four of the last five sessions since the Fed decision, adding nearly 2.4%.

Energy stocks led gains in the previous session, supported by the moderation in oil prices, while financials and information technology (IT) snapped their four-session rally.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers on Wednesday, extending their selling streak to the 11th session, offloading 845.50 million rupees ($10.16 million) of shares on a net basis.

Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth 5.24 billion rupees. DIIs have purchased domestic shares in each of the last 17 sessions.

STOCKS TO WATCH:

** Biocon: Drug maker's subsidiary Biocon Biologics enters into a definitive deal with Eris Lifesciences for divestment of dermatology and nephrology branded formulations business units in India.

** Tata Power: Power generator and distributor's second-quarter profit rises nearly 7%, aided by rise in power demand.

** Oil India: State-owned oil & gas explorer reports 81% year-on-year fall in profit in September quarter, dragged by litigation charge.

** Major earnings on Thursday: Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, Ashok Leyland, Aurobindo Pharma.

($1 = 83.2380 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sohini Goswami)