More Stories

Informist, Friday, Aug. 21, 2026

By Arundathi A R

MUMBAI – Domestic equity indices are expected to move in a range Friday, as suggested by the levels of GIFT Nifty. Despite crude oil prices staying above $93 per barrel, positive bias is expected to remain in the market on the cooling of US bond yields following steps by the US Treasury to stabilise the bond market, analysts said.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that Washington will impose the "toughest sanctions in history" to "collapse" the Iranian government, calling on other nations, including China, to join the effort, Al Jazeera reported. Meanwhile, China criticised US President Donald Trump's "economic D-Day" push against Iran, warning additional sanctions will fail to resolve ongoing disputes. Iran's Foreign Ministry has condemned the US threat of new economic sanctions and called the proposed measures "illegal and inhumane," according to the report.

At 0759 IST, Brent crude oil futures for October delivery were largely flat at $93.80 a barrel. This was nearly 29% higher than the pre-war levels. In the past seven days, crude oil has gained over 12% and nearly 6% this week.

At 0818 IST, the August futures contract of GIFT Nifty was at 24325.50, up 31.50 points or 0.1% from Thursday. This indicates a range-bound movement for the Nifty 50.

"Nifty (50) index bounced back from the key support zone around 24000 spot levels after filling the gap left during the rally on July 29, 2026," Vipin Kumar, assistant vice-president of research at Globe Capital Market, said. "Going ahead, a sustained trading above 24250 spot could lead the index towards the 24400–24450 spot levels, which are likely to act as a strong resistance zone on the higher side. Overall, the chart structure remains sideways as long as the index continues to consolidate within the 23600–24700 spot range on a closing basis."

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Indian equities for the second straight session Thursday, acquiring shares worth INR 4.08 billion. Domestic investors purchased INR 39.74 billion of shares, marking their seventh consecutive session of buying.

Among global indices, Asian equity indices were mixed in early trade. South Korea's KOSPI gained almost 1%. All three major US indices closed lower Thursday with the S&P 500 down almost 1%.  End

US$1 = INR 95.70

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

Edited by Shubhayan Bhattacharya

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.