Archive · 18 Sep 2026
Indian Stocks Face Muted Open Amid Oil, Global Cues
Indian stocks were expected to begin Friday quietly because markets around the world gave mixed signals.
Gift Nifty suggested that the Nifty 50 might open only slightly higher.
The Sensex went down a little in the previous trading session, while the Nifty 50 rose.
Analysts said the Sensex and Nifty 50 still face important levels where prices could either recover or fall further.
Bank Nifty looked weaker than the other indexes.
Oil prices fell for the third day, but they stayed above $100 per barrel.
Expensive oil can increase India’s import costs and affect inflation and company profits.
Investors were also watching tensions in the Middle East because new conflict could make markets more unstable.
Gift Nifty indicated a subdued start near 23,348, about 15 points above the previous Nifty futures close.
The Sensex fell 21.86 points to 74,314.59, while the Nifty 50 gained 53 points to 23,270.60 in the previous session.
Analysts identified 74,700–75,000 as Sensex resistance and 73,500–74,200 as support; Nifty resistance was placed at 23,400–23,500.
Bank Nifty remained technically weak, with resistance at 56,700–56,800 and crucial support near 56,000.
Brent crude fell to $103.77 a barrel and WTI to $100.88, while spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,352.60 an ounce.
- Who
- Indian equity investors and traders, along with market analysts including Ponmudi R, Sachin Gupta and Nagaraj Shetti.
- What
- The Indian stock market was expected to open muted, with technical levels and commodity prices guiding trading decisions.
- When
- Friday, 18 September; the previous domestic session ended with the Sensex lower and the Nifty 50 higher.
- Where
- Indian equity markets, with cues from Asian, US and Middle Eastern markets.
- Why
- Mixed global signals, crude oil prices near $100 a barrel, geopolitical uncertainty and technical resistance were influencing market sentiment.
- Gift Nifty
- Around 23,348 by 7:19 AM, indicating a premium of nearly 15 points over the previous Nifty futures close.
- Previous Sensex close
- 74,314.59, down 21.86 points, or 0.03%.
- Previous Nifty 50 close
- 23,270.60, up 53 points, or 0.23%.
- Nifty 50 levels
- Support at 23,100–23,000; resistance at 23,400–23,500.
- Bank Nifty levels
- Immediate support at 56,000 and resistance at 56,700–56,800; a move above 57,000 could improve the near-term structure.
- Crude oil
- Brent fell to $103.77 a barrel and WTI to $100.88, with both benchmarks remaining above $100.
- Gold
- Spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,352.60 per ounce, while December US gold futures fell 0.2% to $4,391.60.