Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty are likely to see a muted session on Thursday, with early pre-opening trends indicating a near-flat opening after Wednesday’s modest gains amid volatile trade and weak global cues.
The BSE Sensex started today's trading near 83,650, declining almost 150 points, while the NSE Nifty50 rang the opening bell near 25,700, falling 76 points, as of 9:15 AM.
On the 30-share BSE Sensex, top gainers included stocks like HUL, NTPC, Infosys, SBI, and ITC. Meanwhile, IndiGo, Tata Steel, Airtel, Sun Pharma, and Eternal.
In the pre-open session, the Sensex slipped over 30 points and breached 83,800, and the Nifty remained nearly flat at 25,777, around 9:03 AM. Markets had ended slightly higher in the previous session, supported by gains in select heavyweights, though a sharp correction in information technology stocks capped the upside.
Asian Markets Under Pressure Amid Global Caution
Asian equities traded lower during the session, reflecting cautious global sentiment. South Korea’s Kospi declined more than 3 per cent, emerging as one of the sharpest losers in the region. Japan’s Nikkei 225, China’s Shanghai SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also remained in negative territory, signalling broad-based weakness across major Asian markets.
Wall Street Ends Mixed; Tech Stocks Drag
US markets closed mostly lower on Wednesday, weighed down by weakness in technology shares. The Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.51 per cent, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.51 per cent. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to buck the trend, ending 0.53 per cent higher.
The divergence highlighted continued volatility in global equities, particularly within tech-heavy segments.
Institutional Flows Provide Limited Support
On the domestic front, institutional participation remained modest. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers on Wednesday, purchasing equities worth Rs 29.79 crore, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also added to their positions, buying shares worth Rs 249.54 crore in the previous session.
While both FIIs and DIIs were buyers, the inflows remained relatively subdued compared with recent sessions.
Crude Oil Slides Sharply
In the commodities market, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 2.07 per cent to $68.02 per barrel. The fall in oil prices comes amid shifting global demand expectations and evolving geopolitical dynamics.
Volatile Session Ends With Marginal Gains
On Wednesday, the Sensex closed 78.56 points, or 0.09 per cent, higher at 83,817.69 after oscillating between gains and losses throughout the day. The index touched an intra-day high of 83,947.53 and a low of 83,119.95, swinging nearly 827.58 points during the session.
The Nifty advanced 48.45 points, or 0.19 per cent, to settle at 25,776.
Market breadth remained positive, with 2,726 stocks advancing on the BSE, 1,477 declining and 163 remaining unchanged.
Traders attributed the sell-off to renewed concerns over valuations and fears that rapid advances in artificial intelligence could disrupt traditional outsourcing models. Sentiment deteriorated after AI startup Anthropic unveiled an end-to-end workflow automation productivity tool, raising fresh questions about long-term demand for conventional software services.
What To Watch Today
With markets standing nearly flat in pre-opening trade on Thursday morning, investors are expected to remain cautious. Traders will monitor global technology trends, developments around the India-US trade framework and upcoming domestic triggers, including policy cues and macroeconomic data, for clearer direction in the session ahead.