Indian equity benchmarks opened in red on Thursday as investors assessed global market cues, crude oil prices and the latest US inflation data.
The BSE Sensex fell more than 100 points and touched 77,850, while the NSE Nifty50 rang the opening bell near 24,350, taking a hit of nearly 80 points, as of 9:15 AM.
GIFT Nifty Signals Cautious Opening
The GIFT Nifty had pointed to a subdued start for domestic equities. The futures were quoted at 24,447.50, down 26 points, indicating limited momentum ahead of the opening bell.
At around 9:05 AM, the Sensex was trading at 78,149.11, up 182.76 points, or 0.23 per cent, while the Nifty was at 24,427.15, down 8.80 points, or 0.04 per cent.
Investors are also tracking the performance of global equities after US inflation data for July came broadly in line with expectations, easing some concerns around tighter monetary policy.
Asian Markets Gain As Tech Stocks Rebound
Asian equities moved higher on Thursday, supported by a recovery in technology stocks and the softer reaction to the latest US inflation figures.
South Korea's Kospi led regional gains, rising 3.76 per cent, with shares of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix witnessing strong buying interest.
Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 1.45 per cent, while China's CSI 300 edged up 0.05 per cent.
The positive trend across parts of Asia followed a mixed session on Wall Street.
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Wall Street Ends Mixed
US markets closed on a mixed note in the previous session.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.04 per cent, while the S&P 500 gained 0.26 per cent. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended 0.54 per cent higher.
The mixed performance came as investors continued to assess the outlook for interest rates and the latest corporate and economic signals.
Crude Oil Breaks Six-Day Winning Run
Crude oil prices eased after extending their rally for six consecutive sessions.
The decline followed the OPEC+ forecast for lower oil demand in 2026, with the producer group indicating that elevated prices amid the US-Iran conflict could weigh on consumption.
Brent crude futures for August were quoted at $87.96 per barrel, down 1.15 per cent.
Gold Steady, Silver Slips
Gold futures remained largely unchanged in early trade, while silver prices declined.
Silver futures were down 0.53 per cent, as investors assessed movements in global bond yields, the dollar and expectations around US monetary policy.
Market View: Nifty Support At 24,250
Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities, said the benchmarks faced selling pressure at higher levels in the previous session, with the Nifty ending 36 points lower and the Sensex declining 188 points. He noted that PSU banks outperformed, gaining around 2 per cent, while IT stocks were the weakest performers, with the sectoral index falling nearly 1.5 per cent.
From a technical perspective, Chouhan said the Nifty found support around its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) after an intraday decline and subsequently recovered.
He identified 24,250 for the Nifty and 77,500 for the Sensex as important support levels. According to him, holding above these levels could allow the indices to move towards 24,500/78,250, followed by 24,650-24,700/78,700-78,900 if the higher levels are sustained.
However, a break below 24,250/77,500 could intensify selling pressure and push the benchmarks towards 24,200-24,100/77,300-77,000, he cautioned.