Gift Nifty Points to Strong Opening for Indian Markets on Friday

Mumbai, Sept 17: Indian markets are set to open higher on Friday, supported by easing though still elevated oil prices and a positive turn in the Iran war. US President Trump is expected to meet Gulf leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York next Tuesday to discuss next steps in the war with Iran. 

Gift Nifty was trading sharply higher at 23,333 in early trade, up 193 points or 0.83%, pointing to a strong, gap-up opening for Indian equities on Friday, with the contract decisively reclaiming the 23,300 mark after a choppy start to the week.  

The near-month contract, expiring September 29, swung between an intraday low of 23,180 and a high of 23,400 through the session, dipping sharply around mid-morning before staging a sharp rally past the 23,250 mark and holding those gains into the afternoon. The longer-dated October 27 contract also firmed, rising 57 points or 0.24% to 23,390, though the narrower move suggests some of Thursday’s optimism is concentrated in near-term positioning rather than a durable shift in sentiment. Traders said the setup points to Dalal Street opening well above Thursday’s close on Friday, with global cues around crude prices and the Iran conflict likely to determine whether the early gains hold through the session. 

Oil Prices 

Oil prices fell sharply on Thursday, breaking well below the multi-month highs that had underpinned energy markets for weeks. Brent crude dropped 2.14% to $103.56 a barrel, while WTI crude slid 1.67% to $100.72. Murban crude, a key benchmark for Gulf supplies, fell 1.38% to $122.10, and heating oil led the declines, tumbling 3.37% to $5.069. Natural gas eased 0.14% to $2.887, while gasoline slipped 0.38% to $3.472. The broad-based retreat marks one of the sharpest single-day pullbacks in crude since the conflict began, easing some of the pressure on a net oil-importing economy like India, where elevated energy costs have threatened to widen the current account deficit, stoke inflation and squeeze margins at aviation, paints and tyre companies. 

Iran War 

President Trump is expected to meet Gulf leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York next Tuesday to discuss next steps in the war with Iran, Axios reported, citing three sources with direct knowledge of the plans. The meeting is expected to focus on U.S. ideas for a postwar strategy, as Trump and his senior team work on a day-after plan that is expected to be finalised only after the midterms. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also wants to meet Trump in New York, an Israeli source said, though no such meeting has been scheduled yet. Last year, Trump used the UN General Assembly to meet leaders from eight Arab and Muslim countries and present a draft Gaza peace plan, which he made public a week later; a deal to end that war followed shortly afterward, a precedent traders are watching closely this time around. Gulf states hosting U.S. military bases suffered major Iranian attacks during the war, as well as significant economic losses from disrupted oil and gas exports. Trump said on Wednesday that “hopefully we are towards the end of the war,” a comment that traders said helped drive Thursday’s sharp pullback in crude and appears to be feeding directly into Gift Nifty’s rally as well. 

The rally in Gift Nifty follows through on Wednesday’s rebound in the cash market, when the Sensex climbed 332.63 points, or 0.45%, to close at 74,336.45, and the Nifty added 99 points, or 0.43%, to end at 23,217.60, reclaiming the 23,200 level after Tuesday’s slide to a five-month low. Financial and FMCG stocks, which led Wednesday’s bounce, are likely to stay in focus on Friday, and Thursday’s sharp drop in crude — alongside signs that Washington and Tehran may be edging toward a postwar phase — gives the rally a fresh tailwind heading into the session. With Gift Nifty signalling a decisively positive start, all eyes will be on whether Dalal Street can sustain the momentum through the session or give back some of the early gains, as it has done on more than one occasion this week. 

Source

• nseix.com
• https://www.axios.com/2026/09/16/trump-iran-talks-gulf-leaders-un
• https://oilprice.com/oil-price-charts/