Indian equities poised for strong opening as GIFT Nifty climbs 1.5% amid global risk appetite

GIFT Nifty was trading near 24,305 on Thursday, up about 355 points (1.48%) from the previous close, indicating a likely gap-up opening for India’s major indices. The rise was attributed to lower international crude oil prices and renewed institutional buying, though analysts said sustaining the gains beyond the opening would be key.

"Indian equity markets are poised for a strong opening on Thursday, with sentiment receiving a boost from a sharp retreat in international crude oil prices. GIFT Nifty is trading around 24,305, up 355 points, or 1.48%, signalling the possibility of a substantial gap-up opening for the domestic benchmarks," said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money.

Indian benchmarks extended a five-day winning streak on Wednesday, with the Sensex closing at 77,301.40, its highest level in over two months, and the Nifty 50 finishing at 23,960.60. Analysts highlighted buying in financial, FMCG and automobile stocks, supported by foreign fund inflows and falling oil prices.

"Indian equities extended their winning streak to a fifth consecutive session on Wednesday, as easing crude oil prices and prospects of further progress in U.S.–Iran diplomatic negotiations encouraged broad-based domestic buying," said Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth.

Technical outlooks remained cautiously bullish. Sachin Gupta of Choice Equity Broking noted that the Sensex held above its 200-day EMA and that a breakout above 78,000 could trigger further upside, while Vatsal Bhuva of LKP Securities pointed to the 100-day moving average around 23,700 as support for the Nifty, with resistance near 24,000-24,200.

In the United States, Wall Street indices rose sharply after Democrats secured victories in both chambers of Congress. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained about 3%, crossing the 53,000 mark, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 each advanced over 1.5%.

South Korea’s KOSPI triggered a sell-side circuit breaker after a brief plunge of more than 4%, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Taiwan’s Taiex both moved lower in early trade.