Nifty closed nearly flat on Wednesday as easing crude prices improved the outlook for domestic consumption plays, driving renewed investor interest in defensive sectors. Analysts say markets are stabilizing, with sentiment gradually improving as crude oil prices remain contained. Investor confidence has strengthened amid hopes of a resolution to the Israel-Iran conflict.

STATE OF THE MARKETS

Gift Nifty (Earlier SGX Nifty) signals a negative start

Tech View: Buying interest is visible around the 23,000–23,100 zone, whereas overhead resistance is emerging from the declining short-term moving averages. Hence, a range-bound approach is preferred over a directional view. The expected trading range for Nifty is 23,000–23,550, with 23,200 acting as immediate support, 23,000–23,100 as positional support, and 23,450–23,550 as the key resistance zone.

India VIX: India VIX, which is a measure of the fear in the markets, rose 0.4% to settle at 15.63 levels.

S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% as of 9:03 a.m. Tokyo time

Hang Seng futures rose 0.1%

Japan’s Topix fell 1.4%

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1%

Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.4%

The euro was little changed at $1.1539

The Japanese yen was little changed at 160.51 per dollar

The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7812 per dollar

The Australian dollar was little changed at $0.6995

Oil prices climbed more than $2 a barrel Thursday as Iran declared the critical energy chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz, closed after the U.S. launched additional strikes against Iran.

Brent futures rose $2.30, or 2.47%, to $95.40 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbed $2.60, or 2.89%, to $92.63. U.S. crude futures gained more than $3 earlier in the session.

Stocks in F&O ban today

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.

Foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth Rs 2,125 crore on Wednesday. DIIs, meanwhile, were net buyers at Rs 3,124 crore.

The rupee appreciated 14 paise to close at 95.27 against the US dollar on Wednesday, amid likely intervention from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to curb excessive volatility and prevent a further slide in the domestic unit.