Indian Markets Brace For Weak Start On Thursday; Iran War, Oil Over $100 Factor 

Mumbai, April 23: Indian equity markets are likely to open weak on Thursday amid continuing Iran-US tensions, rising crude prices above $100 per barrel and heavy domestic selling of IT stocks seen yesterday — and sentiment in general remains shaky as Gift Nifty lights up red early on.

Gift Nifty for April 28 expiration was trading at 24,147, down by 161.50 points or 0.66% as on 8: 26 am on Thursday — suggesting a gap-down open of around 230 points for the Nifty 50, which had closed at 24,378 on Wednesday. Overall, this indicates Nifty opening deep in the red and likely testing lower around the 24,200–24,250 region at the open. Bulls will have their work cut out for them right from the start of Thursday’s session if they hope to merely stabilise levels from here and any attempt to move meaningfully higher is going to need some positive external factor — and with the Iran-US situation continuing to sour, that doesn’t look available as of early Thursday.

Middle East Conflict Updates

Firstly, Iranian-US conflict escalated significantly overnight with at least three Iranian-flagged tankers being intercepted by US forces in Asian waters close to India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka — diverted as part of Washington’s naval blockade in an unprecedented expansion of the warzone. Iran in turn seized two container ships attempting to leave the Gulf via Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday morning — marking the Islamic Republic’s first seizures of foreign ships since the war began almost two months ago. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who’s also Iran’s chief nuclear deal negotiator, stated that a complete ceasefire “only makes sense when America lifts its naval blockade” of Iran calling continued blockade “a blatant violation” of the truce. Clearly neither side are keen to back down significantly and with ambiguity surrounding whether the ceasefire still holds or not — Strait of Hormuz is still shut and the world remains uneasy.

Asian Markets

Asian markets however, were painting a mixed picture in overnight trade, breaking away from Wall Street’s late-session rally on Wednesday. Japanese markets led the charge, with Nikkei hitting 60,000 for the first time ever, while Korea and Taiwan also jumped to new highs for a second straight session as investors there shrugged off oil worries and chased stocks higher on a strong corporate earnings season — at least offering some positive global flow for Indian markets Thursday.

Oil Prices

Crude oil prices softened slightly Thursday morning after spiking above $100 per barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude futures slipped 15 cents to $101.76 a barrel after settling above the $100-mark for the first time in over two weeks, while WTI crude traded 14 cents lower at $92.82. While oil prices drifted marginally lower Thursday, prices are set to remain well above the key $100 psychological level for now keeping the inflation concern alive, especially for India’s CAD and monetary policy outlook.

Wednesday Closing

On Wednesday, Indian markets saw broad-based selling pressure for a sharp decline after markets reopened following after the weekend. The Sensex dropped over 750 points to settle at 78,516 and the Nifty 50 fell nearly 200 points to close at 24,378 breaking its three-session winning streak dragged down by a near 4% plunge in Nifty IT after major bellwether IT firms HCL Technologies, Infosys and Tech Mahindra reported weak quarterly earnings, rising crude oil prices towards and beyond $100 a barrel added further to negative sentiment.

Source:

• nseindia.com
• https://www.reuters.com/world/china/global-markets-global-markets-2026-04-23/
• https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-edge-lower-with-no-progress-us-iran-talks-hormuz-shipping-still-2026-04-23/
• https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-intercepts-three-iranian-oil-tankers-asian-waters-sources-say-2026-04-22/