D-St set for a negative opening as GIFT Nifty signals weak start

Indian benchmark indices opened broadly flat and remained range-bound for most of the session on Thursday, with limited directional momentum as elevated crude oil prices continued to weigh on investor sentiment. Brent crude remained elevated near the $102 per barrel mark, keeping market participants cautious. However, buying interest during the Closing Auction Session (CAS) helped the benchmark indices recover and end the session in positive territory. Analysts say immediate bias in the index continues to remain down and only a formation of higher high and higher low on a sustained basis in the daily chart will signal a pause in the current down trend.

STATE OF THE MARKETS

GIFT Nifty (Earlier SGX Nifty) signals a negative start

GIFT Nifty on the NSE IX traded lower by 99.5 points, or 0.42 per cent, at 23,360.5, signaling that Dalal Street was headed for a negative start on Friday.


Tech View: On the lower end, immediate support is placed in the 23,380–23,400 zone. On the higher end, resistance is placed at 23,550–23,600. A sustained move above 23,600 could extend the recovery towards 23,800.

India VIX: India VIX, which is a measure of the fear in the markets, was fell 1.05% to settle at 11.80.

Asian shares fall

Asian stocks and bonds fell after a surge in oil prices sparked a selloff in US markets, while the latest inflation data reinforced bets on an imminent Federal Reserve interest-rate hike.

• S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 9:33 a.m. Tokyo time
• Hang Seng futures fell 0.8%
• Nikkei 225 futures (OSE) fell 3%
• Japan’s Topix fell 1.7%
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1%
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.3%

US stocks fall

Another rally in oil prices spurred losses in stocks and bonds, with the latest inflation data reinforcing bets the Federal Reserve will increase rates soon amid pressures from higher energy costs.

Oil prices rise

Oil prices rose on Friday and both major benchmarks are on track ​to end the week at over $100 ​a barrel for the first time since mid-May, as increasing attacks ​along key shipping routes in the Middle East fuel fears of a prolonged disruption to supplies.

Dollar holds gains

The dollar held near its highest levels of the past week and the yen ​slipped for a second day at the ​start of Asian trading on Friday as renewed fears of energy supply disruptions in the ​Middle East pushed up bond yields and oil prices.

Gold lingers near 1-week low

Gold prices lingered near a one-week low on Friday as expectations ​of a U.S. rate ​hike strengthened, with attention turning to U.S. consumer price index ​data due later in the day.

Read more: Ahead of Market: 10 things that will decide stock market action on Friday

Stocks in F&O ban today

1) SAIL

2) LIC Housing Finance

3) Inox Wind

4) Kaynes

5) Bandhan Bank

Securities in the ban period under the F&O segment include companies in which the security has crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit.

FII/DII action

Foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth Rs 438 crore on Thursday. DIIs, meanwhile, were net buyers at Rs 1,026 crore.

Rupee

The Indian rupee declined for a third straight session on Thursday as oil prices continued to march higher on worries over the escalating conflict in the Middle East, elevated dollar demand linked to derivative maturities and corporate hedging.

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