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Informist, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026

 

By Arundathi A R

 

MUMBAI – Analysts see further downside in the domestic equity market if the Nifty 50 index falls below 24000 points. However, some expect the index to recover in the near term. Elevated crude oil prices are likely to continue weighing on the market, with prices at a three-week high of $92 per barrel.

 

US President Donald Trump said no conversations were taking place or scheduled with Iran, while maintaining that the US naval blockade remains in full force and mines in the Strait of Hormuz have been cleared, Al Jazeera reported. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed that the US is now "begging" to negotiate on Iranian conditions after failing to force Tehran to surrender.

 

"As the Q1FY27 (Apr-Jun) earnings season draws to a close, corporate results have generally exceeded expectations, reinforcing confidence in earnings resilience," Vinod Nair, research head at Geojit Investments, said in a note. "However, with temporary market tailwinds fading, the next phase of market performance will depend largely on the stability of crude oil supply chains."

 

At 1639 IST, the October Brent crude futures contract was up almost 1% to $91.86 a barrel. Oil prices are currently 26% higher than their pre-war levels. Oil prices have gained almost 10% in the past seven days.

 

At the end of the continuous trading session at 1515 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 24048.55 points, down 0.4% from Tuesday. The BSE Sensex was at 76908.05 points, down 0.4%. After the closing auction session, the Nifty 50 ended at 24078.30, down 76.60 points or 0.3%. The Sensex ended at 76909.68, down 325.78 points or 0.4%. India VIX, the volatility index, fell 0.6% to 11.3225 points.

 

"Going ahead, the immediate support for Nifty is placed in the 23950-23900 zone," Sudeep Shah, technical and derivatives research head at SBI Securities, said in a note. "Any sustainable move below this zone could result in Nifty extending its weakness towards 23750, followed by 23600 in the short term. On the upside, the immediate resistance for Nifty is placed in the 24230-24250 zone."

 

Both foreign investors and domestic investors net bought equity shares Tuesday. Foreign investors net bought shares worth INR 16.51 billion, while domestic investors net bought equity shares of INR 25.79 billion the previous day.

 

The rupee settled at a three-week low of 95.75 per dollar Tuesday. The domestic unit fell as crude oil prices rose above $91 a barrel. "So long as crude oil prices remain elevated, the rupee will continue to be mildly weak," V.K. Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said in a note. "But there is no room for a sharp depreciation since India has adequate forex reserves and the inflows under the FCNR (B) scheme have been much better-than-expected."  End

 

US$1 = INR 95.7525

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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