Gift Nifty Points to Muted-To-Positive Start as Asian Stocks Gain

Mumbai, Sept 30: Indian markets are set for a muted-to-positive opening on Wednesday, tracking gains in Asian stocks and a positive development on the Middle East conflict, even as Wall Street ended lower on Tuesday. Gift Nifty futures were quoted at 22,812.50, down 24.50 points, or 0.11 per cent, as of 8:15 am IST, pointing to a largely flat start for the Nifty, which closed at 22,716.20 on Tuesday. 

In a positive development, Qatar said on Tuesday it hopes shuttle diplomacy between Iran and the US can produce a breakthrough, even after Trump denied media reports that he was willing to ease sanctions and release frozen Iranian funds in exchange for nuclear concessions. Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said mediators are exchanging messages between the two sides to find common ground for a deal. Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the war, now in its eighth month, would be over soon, though he maintained Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon. 

The US and Iran have yet to find an off-ramp from the conflict, and talks that intensified during last week’s UN General Assembly meeting have not yielded an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Doha previously played a supporting role in the June memorandum of understanding that led to a brief ceasefire, and US and Iranian officials again spoke separately with Qatari mediators on Monday. Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday night that he had offered Iran “NOTHING,” rejecting Axios and CNN reports that cited unidentified US officials. 

Asian markets rallied broadly on Wednesday morning, led by a 1.28 per cent jump in Japan’s Nikkei 225, while Wall Street closed mixed on Tuesday. The mixed global signals leave Indian markets set for a cautious, largely range-bound start at 9:15 am. 

Gift Nifty 

The Gift Nifty near-month contract, expiring October 27, was quoted at 22,812.50, down 24.50 points, or 0.11 per cent, as of 8:15 am IST on Wednesday. The contract’s marginal decline suggests the Nifty could open close to its Tuesday close of 22,716.20, after the index settled lower for a second straight session following the monthly expiry. 

The war between the US, Israel and Iran, now in its eighth month, has killed thousands of people and severely disrupted global energy supplies, fuelling inflation. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons but says it has the right to a civilian nuclear programme, while Trump has cited preventing Tehran from acquiring a bomb as a central war goal. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said Tehran is ready for talks on its nuclear programme but will not accept “bullying or coercion.” Saudi Arabia has been drawn deeper into the conflict this month as Iran-aligned Houthi fighters advanced in Yemen, threatening Saudi oil exports through the Red Sea. 

Oil 

Brent crude was at USD 103.10 a barrel, up a modest 0.5 per cent, while West Texas Intermediate was nearly flat at USD 89.43. Murban crude fell 1.98 per cent to USD 114.63 and the DME Oman contract dropped 4.29 per cent to USD 107.41, while the OPEC basket declined 0.91 per cent to USD 111.75. The pullback follows Tuesday’s sharp gains, when Brent had risen about 1.5 per cent to near USD 107 on Middle East supply concerns. 

Asian Markets  

Asian markets rallied broadly on Wednesday morning. Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 1.28 per cent to 66,318.81, Taiwan gained 1.19 per cent to 48,200.74 and Australia’s ASX 200 rose 0.93 per cent to 8,790.60, while Malaysia’s benchmark added 0.63 per cent and New Zealand’s NZX 50 climbed 1 per cent to 13,819.86. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.08 per cent to 24,503.38 and South Korea’s KOSPI fell 0.31 per cent to 6,849.31, while China’s Shanghai index edged up 0.14 per cent and Shenzhen eased 0.08 per cent. The Nifty 50 was unchanged at 22,716.20 in the overnight snapshot. 

US Markets  

US markets ended mixed on Tuesday. The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.21 per cent to 30,339.33 and the transportation index gained 0.35 per cent to 19,650.37, while the utilities index jumped 1.14 per cent to 1,015.93. The NYSE index fell 0.20 per cent to 23,709.60 and the Russell 2000 declined 0.35 per cent to 2,807.92. 

Sensex, Nifty on Tuesday 

The Sensex fell 242.65 points, or 0.33 per cent, to close at 72,529.07 on Tuesday, while the Nifty declined 64.05 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 22,716.20, settling below 22,750 on the monthly expiry day. Market breadth remained weak, with 1,871 shares advancing against 2,321 declines and 164 unchanged, while the Nifty Midcap index fell 0.6 per cent and the Smallcap index declined 0.8 per cent. Sectorally, only media, metal and pharma indices ended higher, while auto, IT and consumer durables declined more than 1 per cent each. The US 10-year Treasury yield rose to its highest level since July 2007, adding to the pressure on Indian equities. 

• https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-denies-offering-iran-sanctions-relief-tehran-says-ready-talks-2026-09-29/
• https://www.cnbc.com/markets/us-markets/
• www.oilprice.com