Gift Nifty Signals Flat Open for Sensex, Nifty on Monday

Mumbai, October 23:Gift Nifty futures point to a flat opening for the Sensex and Nifty 50 on Monday, with the contract trading about 3 points above the Nifty’s Friday close. The Indian indices ended a fourth straight session lower, and the Nifty and Sensex fell 2.4 per cent and 2.2 per cent over the week.

The near-month Gift Nifty contract was trading at 22,603.00, down 5 points or 0.02 per cent from its previous close of 22,608.00, in afternoon trade on Friday. Against the Nifty 50’s Friday close of 22,600.00, the contract is at a premium of 3 points, or 0.01 per cent.

The contract opened at 22,869.50 and touched a high of 22,874.00 early in the session. It slid through the Indian trading day to a low of 22,445.00 around midday before recovering to 22,603.00 in the afternoon.

Asian Stocks

Asian markets ended mostly higher on Friday, recovering part of Thursday’s sell-off, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng up 0.69 per cent, or 158.69 points, to 23,093.37 and South Korea’s Kospi up 0.30 per cent to 5,550.30. Chinese markets led the regional gains, with the Shenzhen index rising 2.79 per cent to 11,673.83 and the Shanghai Composite adding 0.89 per cent to 3,690.48. Malaysia gained 0.21 per cent, Thailand’s SET index 0.42 per cent, Singapore’s Straits Times 0.13 per cent and Australia’s ASX 200 0.02 per cent to 8,795.20. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.34 per cent, or 214.68 points, to 62,693.16, and New Zealand’s NZX 50 eased 0.09 per cent to 13,733.93.

Oil Prices

Oil prices rose on Friday, with Brent crude gaining USD 1.44, or 1.27 per cent, to USD 114.61 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rising USD 1.51, or 1.52 per cent, to USD 100.98. Brent is trading at its highest level since May as renewed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia raise fears of supply disruption. India depends heavily on imported crude, so costlier oil widens the import bill, feeds inflation and squeezes corporate margins, and higher fuel and transport costs could also weigh on consumption.

Iran War

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said four vessels involved in illegal oil transfers in the northern Persian Gulf were hit and caught fire, while three more vessels collided with mines west of the Strait of Hormuz. It warned the US military that continued provocations could lead to a wider response against its regional bases. Separately, Saudi Aramco told staff to evacuate its Dhahran headquarters as fighting with Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis intensified, and Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index dropped 2.5 per cent on Thursday. The Houthis said they targeted Aramco facilities in Yanbu and the Saudi defence ministry in Riyadh, claims Saudi authorities did not confirm, in fighting that ended a 2022 UN-brokered truce and opened another front in the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Friday’s Close

Indian equity indices ended lower for a fourth consecutive session on Friday, snapping a two-week winning streak. The Sensex fell 125.56 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 73,123.83, and the Nifty 50 lost 87.65 points, or 0.39 per cent, to 22,600.00, after trading between 22,372.00 and 22,787.25. The benchmarks opened higher after three losing sessions but failed to hold the gains as surging crude and Middle East tension heightened concerns over inflation and corporate profitability. Liquidity was also absorbed by strong demand for Jio Platforms’ USD 3.2 billion IPO, which was subscribed 13.8 times by 3:30 pm.

Broader markets fell harder than the benchmark. The Nifty Smallcap 50 dropped 3.15 per cent to 8,924.75, the Nifty Smallcap 100 fell 2.94 per cent to 17,739.45 and the Nifty Smallcap 250 lost 2.79 per cent to 16,385.15. The Nifty Next 50 declined 2.26 per cent to 65,828.60, the Nifty Midcap 100 slid 2.21 per cent to 55,800.65 and the Nifty 500 shed 1.24 per cent to 21,427.60, while India VIX rose 6.32 per cent to 16.76. All sectoral indices ended lower, led by Nifty Metal at 2.71 per cent, Nifty Consumer Durables at 2.63 per cent, Nifty Realty at 2.38 per cent and Nifty PSU Bank at 2.26 per cent.

Sources:

• Gift Nifty and NSE data
• Reuters
• PTI
• CNBC
• OilPrice.com