MUMBAI: Indian shares traded lower on Wednesday as metal and pharmaceutical stocks declined ahead of the country’s biggest initial public offering and an expected rate hike by the US Federal Reserve. The NSE Nifty 50 index was down 0.56 percent at 16,973.95 by 0456 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.31 percent to 56,798.83. The Indian markets were closed on Tuesday for a holiday. LIC opens for subscription State-owned Life Insurance Corp’s $2.7 billion IPO, India’s largest, opened to subscriptions from retail and other investors on Wednesday following strong demand from anchor investors led by domestic mutual funds. The Indian government expects to raise the sum, just a third of its original target, from selling a 3.5 percent stake in the country’s top insurance company, giving it an initial value of $78.52 billion. The subscription, set to close on May 9, will offer a discount to employees and retail investors of 45 rupees ($0.59) per share. LIC policyholders will be offered a discount of 60 rupees per share. The price range for the issue has been set between 902 rupees and 949 rupees per share. After a reservation for employees and policyholders, the remaining shares will be allocated in a ratio of 50 percent to qualified institutional buyers, 35 percent to retail investors and 15 percent to non-institutional investors. The final IPO price will be determined after the subscription closes. Dairy Queen all set to enter India Dairy Queen is looking to China and perhaps India to fuel growth, while counting on a revamped burger menu to bring in more American and Canadian customers. Troy Bader, chief executive of International Dairy Queen Inc. since 2018, expects international markets to be the fastest-growing for the 82-year-old restaurant chain, which Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. bought in 1998. China is Dairy Queen’s third-largest market by sales and second-largest by store count, with more than 1,100 locations. The Bloomington, Minnesota-based company is teaming up with private equity firm FountainVest Partners to add 600 more by 2030. “What we’ve seen over time is the ever-growing middle class and income levels in China, which makes our brand and our products much more accessible,” Bader, 57, said in an April 29 interview during Berkshire’s annual shareholder weekend. Dairy Queen has more than 7,000 locations in 20 countries, none in Russia or Ukraine. While the pandemic delayed international expansion, Bader said India could be next. (With input from Reuters)