At 7:30 am, the Nifty futures were trading higher by 1.7 per cent on the Singapore Stock Exchange.The domestic stock markets are likely to open in the green, extending the gains of the previous three sessions, on the back of positive global cues.

Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a gap-up opening for the index in India, with a 171-points gain.

At 7:30 am, the Nifty futures were trading at 12,079, higher by 171 points or 1.7 per cent on the Singapore Stock Exchange.Asian share markets firmed on Thursday while bonds held big gains as investors awaited a clear result from the U.S.

election.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.5 per cent to reach its highest since March 2018.

Japan's Nikkei rose 0.9 per cent to a nine-month high and South Korea put on 1.5 per cent.US stocks surged to close higher on Wednesday as the presidential election race remained cloudy but the likelihood of gridlock in Congress made investors optimistic that major policy changes would be difficult to enact.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.35 per cent, the S-P 500 gained 2.21 per cent and Nasdaq Composite added 3.83 per cent.Meanwhile, oil prices fell in early trade on Thursday as the dollar strengthened on expectations the Republican Party would keep control of the Senate following the U.S.

election, holding back any huge COVID-19 relief package.U.S.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped 29 cents, or 0.7 per cent, to $38.86 a barrel at 0042 GMT.

Brent crude futures had yet to start trading.

Both benchmark contracts jumped around 4 per cent on Wednesday.On the earnings front, ABB India, Aditya Birla Capital, Adani Power, Adani Transmission, Astrazeneca Pharma, Bajaj Electricals, Berger Paints India and Birla Corporation will declare their quarterly numbers during the day.On Wednesday, the BSE Sensex had jumped 355.01 points to close at 40,616.14 and the Nifty50 had rallied 95 points to 11,908.50.