Gift Nifty June 4, 2026: Muted-to-Positive Open as Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Kindles Hopes for Broader Iran Deal

Mumbai, June 4: Domestic markets are likely to open with a muted-to-positive bias on Thursday, as news of Israel and Lebanon agreeing to begin enforcing a ceasefire agreement lifted sentiment across global markets, and boost hopes for a broader deal to end the US-Israeli war. Overnight oil prices fell in response to easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East while stock markets extended recoveries from Wednesday’ fear-induced selloffs, offering Indian markets space to recoup some of the previous session sharp losses.

Gift Nifty

Gift Nifty Futures for delivery on June 30, 2026, traded at 23,315.00 at 7:25 am on Thursday, June 4. That’s 17 points or 0.07% below the previous close – a relatively flat reading that suggests gift Nifty will open with little to no gap, at least for now. Domestic stocks are likely to be swayed more by how geopolitical risk evolves through Thursday’ trading session than any predisposed outlook. On Wednesday, Nifty cash closed at 23,405.60, so we can probably expect the index to open around the 23,310-23,320 area. Given how subdued Gift Nifty futures are trading, it appears that the market wants to trend higher on news of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon but lacks conviction to push prices sharply higher.

Asian Markets

Most Asian markets were trading in the red on Thursday morning despite Israel-Lebanon ceasefire news that sent U.S. stocks paring losses in overnight trade. Japan’ Nikkei 225 led regional declines, plunging 1.77% to 67,194.67, while Indonesia’ JSX Composite index recorded the region’ worst performance, dropping 4.11% to 5,941.07. Australia’ All Ordinaries fell 1.29%, Hong Kong’ Hang Seng shed 0.73%, Shanghai’ SSE Composite edged down 0.29% and Pakistan’ KSE 100 declined 0.49%. Malaysia’ KLCI rose 0.62%, Vietnam’ HNX 30 advanced 1.35% and Thailand’ SET Index climbed 1.26%.

US Markets – Wednesday’s Closing Bell

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 620.72 points or 1.21% Wednesday to close at 50,687.07, the S& P 500 lost 56.10 points or 0.74% to settle at 7,553.68, and the Nasdaq Composite closed 0.89% lower at 26,853.98. In Canada, the S& P/TSX Composite lost 1.05% to close at 34,801.54, while the NYSE Compacted gave up 0.87% to 23,276.49. Oil-linked equity markets did not provide investors with a safe haven either as fears about the war on Iran escalated overnight – knocking crude prices sharply higher across the board.

Oil Prices

Oil prices pared some gains on Thursday in early morning trade Asia as hopes that Israel and Lebanon will enforce a ceasefire agreement reduced some of the risk aversion pervading through global markets. Brent futures were trading $97.14 per barrel during Asian hours, down 67 cents or 0.69% from their previous close, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate eased 62 cents or 0.65% to $95.40 per barrel. Both benchmarks enjoyed sharp rallies on Wednesday, with Brent crude surging past 2.6% to hit an intraday high of $98.49 as Iranian forces bomb Kuwait’ airport and continued disruptions in Strait of Hormuz flow raise fears about tighter oil supplies.

Iran War: Ceasefire Hopes Emerge

In a significant diplomatic development on Wednesday, Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a ceasefire to end hostilities, with the Trump administration confirming the agreement following negotiations in Washington — contingent on a complete halt to fire from Iran-aligned Hezbollah and the evacuation of its operatives from the South Litani Sector. The ceasefire is particularly significant because Tehran had conditioned any deal with the U.S. in part on an end to the Israel-Lebanon fighting, making the agreement a potential stepping stone toward a broader resolution of the three-month-old U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. However, Wednesday’s session was not without fresh violence: Iran struck Kuwait’s international airport with a drone and missile attack that killed one person, injured over 60, and temporarily suspended flights, while U.S. Central Command carried out strikes near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards denied targeting the airport and blamed the damage on failed U.S. interceptor missiles — a claim the U.S. military flatly rejected — underscoring how fragile the path to a durable ceasefire remains even as diplomatic signals improve.

Wednesday’s Closing Bell of Sensex, Nifty

Indian benchmark indices recovered sharply from intraday lows to end Wednesday’s volatile session with losses far smaller than the morning’s carnage had suggested, with the Sensex ending 303.67 points or 0.41% lower at 74,346.17 and the Nifty 50 falling 77.95 points or 0.33% to settle at 23,405.60, reclaiming the psychologically important 23,400 mark by the close. The recovery was driven by buying in banking, healthcare and telecom shares that helped cushion the damage from a brutal 5.5% collapse in the Nifty IT index — its sharpest single-session decline in months as TCS, Infosys and HCL Tech bore the brunt of global risk-off selling. Market breadth remained weak despite the bounce, with 2,318 stocks declining against 1,714 advances on the NSE, reflecting the selective rather than broad-based nature of the late-session recovery.

Source:

• nseindia.com