Stock Market Live Updates: GIFT Nifty Points to Strong Opening; Asian Equities Mixed as Crude Oil Slides Further

Indian equity benchmarks, the Sensex and Nifty 50, are set for a strong opening on Thursday, buoyed by positive cues from overnight US equity gains and an extended slide in international crude prices. Trends on the GIFT Nifty indicate a gap-up start, surging roughly 363 points or 1.52%, with Nifty futures hovering around the 24,313 mark.

Crude Oil Extends Losses for Fourth Straight Session

Global crude oil benchmarks declined for the fourth consecutive trading day on Thursday. The drop comes as market participants assess the political landscape following US Congressional election setbacks for President Donald Trump’s Republican Party, which traders anticipate could lower the probability of further military escalation between the US, Israel, and Iran.

• Brent Crude: Fell 97 cents (1.03%) to $93.65 per barrel.
• WTI Crude: Slipped $1.14 (1.29%) to trade at $86.98 per barrel.

This follows an aggressive slide of over 8% in the preceding session, which dragged both contracts to their lowest settlements since late August. Lower crude prices provide relief to net oil-importing economies like India by helping contain inflation and trade deficit pressures.

Mixed Trends Across Asian Markets

Asian equity bourses presented a mixed picture in morning trade, with sector-specific rotations dictating performance:

• Gains in Consumer & Financials: Shares in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rallied nearly 3%, tracking sharp overnight advances on Wall Street where the S&P 500 jumped 1.6% (its strongest single-day rally in three months) and the Nasdaq 100 added 0.9%.
• Semiconductor Drag: South Korea’s benchmark Kospi fell over 3.3% as investors pulled back from tech and semiconductor heavyweights over cooling sentiment surrounding data-centre expansion and spillover losses from US chipmakers.

Despite the tech drag in select Asian hubs, overall market breadth across the MSCI Asia Pacific Index remained largely positive, setting an optimistic tone for Indian domestic equities at the opening bell.