Indian markets are expected to open lower on Thursday as GIFT NIFTY futures were trading more than 140 points lower at 7:50 am. Elevated crude oil prices and a rising dollar index could add pressure on the sentiment on Thursday.
The US markets closed deep in the red as tensions in the Middle East escalated. The Dow Jones, NASDAQ and S&P 500 plunged over 1.5% on Wednesday. Investors also turned cautious after the US CPI inflation soared to 4.2%, the highest in three years.
Brent crude oil prices steadied near $94 per barrel on Thursday morning after the US carried out multiple strikes on Iran for the second consecutive day. President Trump accused Iran of taking too long to make a deal and said that it will have to pay the price for it.
The Asian markets opened in the red across the board, amid weak global market cues. The Japanese Nikkei fell 0.9%, Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.7% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.2% on Thursday morning.
NIFTY50
The NIFTY50 crossed 23,400 in the intraday session on Wednesday but failed to hold on to the gains and closed marginally in the red. The index faced resistance near the 23,450-23,500 zone and soon crawled back to 23,200 levels. It continues to remain in a consolidation mode with the 20 EMA as crucial resistance and 23,150 as crucial support. The direction of the index can only be determined if it manages to close out of the above-mentioned range in the coming weeks.
NIFTY50 OI analysis
The NIFTY50’s open interest data for Thursday indicates 23,500 calls holding the highest open interest, suggesting a strong resistance for NIFTY50. On the flipside, 23,200 and 23,000 are the last support levels for NIFTY50 with strong open interest concentration on the downside.