The Indian stock market benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty 50, are expected to open higher on Thursday, following a rally in global markets.
Asian markets gained, while the US stock market ended higher overnight, as technology stocks extended their upward momentum.
On Wednesday, the Indian stock market gave up early gains and ended marginally higher.
The Sensex gained 50.15 points, or 0.06%, to close at 82,276.07, while the Nifty 50 settled 57.85 points, or 0.23%, higher at 25,482.50.
“While the undertone remains cautious with selective sectoral participation, markets are likely to continue trading within a broader range in the near term, guided by macro developments and sector-specific catalysts,” said Siddhartha Khemka – Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.
Here are key global market cues for Sensex today:
Asian Markets
Asian markets traded higher on Thursday, following overnight rally on Wall Street, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 crossing above 59,000 for the first time. The Nikkei 225 rose 1.1%, to an all-time high of 59,199.31, and Topix rallied 1.45%, also scaling a new peak. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.65%, while the Kosdaq added 0.57%. Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures indicated a higher opening.
Gift Nifty Today
Gift Nifty was trading around 25,669 level, a premium of nearly 41 points from the Nifty futures’ previous close, indicating a positive start for the Indian stock market indices.
Wall Street
US stock market ended higher on Wednesday and touched two-week highs, as technology stocks extended their rally.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 307.65 points, or 0.63%, to 49,482.15, while the S&P 500 gained 56.06 points, or 0.81%, to 6,946.13. The Nasdaq Composite closed 288.40 points, or 1.26%, higher at 23,152.08.
Nvidia stock price gained 1.44%, as the company’s fourth-quarter revenue beat analyst estimates. AMD shares fell 1.39%, Microsoft share price rallied 2.98%, Apple stock price rose 0.77%, Amazon shares gained 1% and Meta stock price advanced 2.25%. Axon Enterprise shares jumped 17.6%.
Trump Tariffs
The US tariff rate for some countries will rise to 15% or higher from the newly imposed 10%, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said, without naming any specific trading partners or giving further details, Reuters reported.
US-Iran Talks
Iran and the US hold the latest round of talks in Geneva on Thursday aimed at resolving their longstanding nuclear dispute and averting new US strikes on Iran following a large-scale military buildup. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will attend the indirect talks with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, a US official told Reuters.
Nvidia Q4 Earnings
Nvidia reported a record revenue of $68.1 billion in the fourth quarter, up 73% from a year ago and well above the $65.7 billion analysts had forecast. Net income for the quarter more than doubled YoY to $42.96 billion. The company forecast the current quarter’s revenue at $78 billion, plus or minus 2%, comfortably above the roughly $72 billion Wall Street expectations.
US Crude Oil Inventories
US crude inventories rose last week as refinery utilization fell and imports increased. Crude inventories rose by 16 million barrels to 435.8 million barrels in the week ended February 20, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.5-million-barrel rise.
Dollar
The dollar slipped as markets awaited details of the latest US tariffs on imports of foreign goods. The US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, held losses from Wednesday’s session, falling to 97.592. The yen was 0.2% stronger against the dollar at 156.045. The euro was flat at $1.1815, while the British pound was also little changed at $1.3555.
Gold Rate Today
Gold prices steadied amid geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and US tariffs uncertainties. Spot gold price rose 0.1% to $5,170.75 an ounce, while silver price was little changed at $89.16 an ounce.
Crude Oil Prices
Crude oil prices traded higher ahead of nuclear talks between the US and Iran. Brent crude oil price rose 0.27% to $71.07 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 0.24% to $65.58.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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