Stock Market today: Gift Nifty up 22 pts; key levels to watch for Nifty, Sensex & Nifty Bank

India’s stock benchmarks are likely to open marginally higher on Thursday, lifted by robust earnings from Infosys and optimism over a potential free-trade agreement with Britain. Trade deals between Japan and the US shall also support the sentiments at the bourses. However, weekly expiry of F&O contracts may add to some volatility for the traders.

Nifty futures on the NSE International Exchange traded 21.70 points, or 0.09 per cent, down at 25,274.50, hinting at a positive start for the domestic market on Thursday. Shares in Asia rallied as optimism over earnings and trade supported demand for higher yielding assets. Nikkei soared another 2 per cent, while KOSPI and Hang Seng were up half a per cent each.

US striking trade deals with many countries is slowly removing concerns surrounding tariff wars. The optimism explains the resilience and uptrend in global equity markets now. In the mother market US, good corporate earnings are providing the fundamental support to the market, said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments.

“Regarding institutional activity, FIIs have turned consistent sellers in the cash market even while continuing to invest through the primary market route. The principal reason for FII selling is the high valuations in India and relatively cheaper valuations in other markets,” he said.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq notched record high closes on Wednesday, lifted by Nvidia and GE Vernova. The Nasdaq gained 0.61 per cent to 21,020.02 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.14 per cent to 45,010.29 points. The S&P 500 climbed 0.78 per cent to end the session at 6,358.91 points.

Trade negotiations aside, markets will also be focused on a rate decision from the European Central Bank later in the day. The dollar index was last little changed at 97.21. Rate sensitive Bitcoin was holding firm at $119,000. Spot gold was traded at $3,390.84 per ounce, up 0.1 per cent.

Oil prices rose on Thursday, buoyed by optimism over US trade negotiations that would ease pressure on the global economy and a sharper-than-expected decline in US crude inventories. Brent crude futures gained 24 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $68.75 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 25 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $65.50 per barrel.

The outlook remains upbeat amid expectations of a favourable US-India tariff deal and positive Q1FY26 results from Infosys, surpassing street estimates with significant deal signings, said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities. “Key attention now shifts to Q1 corporate earnings,” he adds.

Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs turned net sellers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 4,209.11 crore on Wednesday. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned buyers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 4,358.52 crore on a net-net basis.
 

Nifty & Sensex outlook

Nifty has moved above the 21-day EMA on the daily timeframe, indicating an increase in bullish sentiment, In the short term, sentiment is likely to remain optimistic, said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities. “On the higher side, Nifty may move towards 25,500, while support is placed at 24,900. A break below this level could weaken the current trend,” he said.

Nifty is holding an uptrend continuation formation, and on daily charts, a bullish candle has been formed, which is largely positive. For positional traders, the 50-day SMA at 25,060/82,000 and 25,100/82,200 would act as key support zones, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities.

“On the higher side, the 20-day SMA or 25,325/83,000 could serve as the immediate hurdle for the bulls. A successful breakout above these levels could push the market towards 25,400–25,475 / 83,300–83,500. On the flip side, if the market falls below 25,060/82,000, the uptrend would become vulnerable. Below this level, traders may prefer to exit their long positions,” he said.
 

Nifty Bank outlook

Nifty Bank is trading above the 20-day SMA, which reflects short-term bullish strength. The RSI is hovering around 56, indicating neutral momentum but with a slight bullish bias as it’s rising steadily. On the downside, immediate support is placed around 56,700, while a decisive breakout above the 57,300 resistance zone may open the door for higher levels, said Reliance Securities.

Bank Nifty formed an inside bar candlestick on the daily chart. The next major hurdle for Bank Nifty is placed around 57,630, which is near its all-time high. Hence, short-term traders are advised to wait for a fresh bullish trigger above 57,286, said Hrishikesh Yedve, AVP Technical and Derivative Research, Asit C. Mehta Investment Interrmediates.