Nifty today: Bears circle D-Street again as Gift Nifty signals weak start. Key levels and triggers to track

Indian markets remained under pressure on Wednesday, after the ceasefire deadline expired. Nifty closed below 24,500 at 24,378 and snapping its three-day winning streak. Analysts say Indian markets are expected to consolidate in the near term as investors continue to monitor developments in the US–Iran conflict and the ongoing US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

STATE OF THE MARKETS
GIFT Nifty (Earlier SGX Nifty) signals a gap-down start
GIFT Nifty on the NSE IX traded lower by 163 points, or 0.67 per cent, at 24,204.50, signaling that Dalal Street was headed for a negative start on Thursday.

• Tech View: The setup looks balanced and non-indicative. Any development coming from the Middle East will have an impact on Thursday’s opening. On the lower end, support is placed at 24,200, below which the index might drift down towards 23,900.
• India VIX: India VIX, which is a measure of the fear in the markets, rose 4.3% to settle at 18.30 levels.

US stocks end higher
U.S. stocks climbed on Wednesday to send the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to closing records, after U.S. President Donald Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran, with a round of solid corporate earnings providing additional support for optimism.Asian shares mixed
US equity-index futures dropped after Brent crude oil rose at the open in Asian trading amid concerns about the war in Iran. Contracts for the S&P 500 Index dropped 0.4% and Brent advanced 1.3% to nearly $103 a barrel. Asian shares fluctuated at the open and advanced 0.1%.

• S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% as of 9:25 a.m. Tokyo time
• Hang Seng futures were little changed
• Japan’s Topix fell 0.4%
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5%
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.5%

Oil dips
Oil prices were marginally lower on Thursday after big gains in the previous session amid the stalled peace talks between Iran and the United States, and as both nations maintained restrictions on the flow of trade through ‌the Strait of ⁠Hormuz.

Dollar gains
The dollar wobbled near a 1-1/2-week high on Thursday as a standoff between Iran and the U.S. in the Middle East war and lack of progress in peace talks pulled oil prices back above $100 per barrel, weighing on investor sentiment.

Stocks in F&O ban today

SAIL

Securities in the ban period under the F&O segment include companies in which the security has crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit.

FII/DII action
Foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth Rs 2,078 crore on Wednesday. DIIs, meanwhile, were net sellers at Rs 1078 crore.

Rupee
The Indian rupee fell for the third consecutive session on Wednesday, as optimism about an end to the Iran war remained muted despite the US indefinitely extending a ceasefire.

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