Gift Nifty Signals Flat Open for Sensex, Nifty on Thursday

Mumbai, October 28: Gift Nifty futures point to a flat-to-slightly-higher opening for the Sensex and Nifty 50 on Thursday, with the near-month contract at a small premium to the Nifty’s close. The Indian indices ended lower on Wednesday, with the Sensex down 0.48 per cent and the Nifty 0.22 per cent, as rising crude prices and caution ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy decision outweighed a strong stock market debut by Jio Platforms. 

The near-month November Gift Nifty contract was trading at 22,727.00, down 6 points or 0.03 per cent from its previous close, in evening trade. Against the Nifty 50’s close of 22,698.85, the contract is at a premium of 28.15 points, or 0.12 per cent. The December contract was unchanged at 22,885.50, a premium of 186.65 points, or 0.82 per cent. 

The November contract opened at 22,713.50 and slid to a low of 22,518 in mid-morning trade as Indian markets came under pressure. It then staged a strong recovery through the afternoon, touching a high of 22,845 before easing back and settling near 22,730 as the Indian session wound down. 

The Fed’s two-day meeting ends on Wednesday in the US, with the decision due at about 11:30 pm India time, so the reaction will reach Indian markets only on Thursday. Traders largely expect rates to be held at 3.75 to 4 per cent, but investors are watching for a hawkish tone on a possible December hike, since higher US rates could strengthen the dollar and reduce the appeal of Indian equities. 

Asian Stocks 

Asian stocks were mostly higher on Wednesday, led by a 6.63 per cent jump in South Korea’s Kospi, or 374.10 points, to 6,012.44. Taiwan’s benchmark rose 2.04 per cent to 47,035.58, Shenzhen climbed 2.02 per cent to 11,473.18, Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.08 per cent to 63,954.19 and the Shanghai Composite added 0.91 per cent to 3,681.47. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.23 per cent to 23,094.83, while Malaysia, New Zealand and Singapore were marginally higher. Australia’s ASX 200 slipped 0.03 per cent to 8,847.30 and Thailand’s SET index lost 0.57 per cent to 1,566.10. 

Oil Prices 

Oil prices stayed elevated on Wednesday as fresh Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, including a claimed missile strike on the Ras Tanura refinery, kept supply fears alive. Brent crude traded at USD 115.06 per barrel, up USD 1.18 or 1.04 per cent, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained USD 1.62, or 1.62 per cent, to USD 101.52. US natural gas rose 1.93 per cent to USD 2.749, and Brent remains close to a six-month high. India depends heavily on imported crude, so costlier oil widens the import bill, weighs on the rupee, feeds inflation and squeezes corporate margins. 

Wednesday’s Close 

Indian equity indices ended lower on Wednesday, October 28, with the Nifty slipping below 22,700 as rising crude prices weighed on sentiment ahead of the Fed decision. The Sensex fell 352.64 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 73,246.03, while the Nifty 50 declined 50.90 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 22,698.85. Breadth was mixed, with 2,178 shares advancing, 1,957 declining and 185 unchanged. 

Information technology and oil and gas stocks led the losses, with the Nifty IT and Nifty Oil & Gas indices each falling about 2 per cent. Infosys and HCL Technologies were among the IT laggards, while Reliance Industries, ONGC and Bharti Airtel were also among the top Nifty 50 losers, and the realty, energy and FMCG indices lost around 0.5 per cent each. 

Auto, consumer durables, media and pharma indices gained around 1 per cent each, and Apollo Hospitals, Larsen & Toubro, Trent, SBI Life Insurance and InterGlobe Aviation were among the top Nifty gainers. Jio Platforms listed at Rs 1,358, a 21.36 per cent premium to its issue price of Rs 1,119, and ended 4.49 per cent higher at Rs 1,419 on the NSE, taking its market value to about Rs 13 lakh crore. 

Sources

• nseix.com
• Gift Nifty
• NSE data
• CNBC
• OilPrice.com