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Informist, Friday, Aug. 21, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Indices to move in range Fri; positive bias likely to stay

 

MUMBAI--0830 IST--Benchmark equity indices are likely to move in range as suggested by the levels of GIFT Nifty. Asian equity indices were mixed in early trade. Though higher crude oil prices are likely to remain a major overhang, the cooling of US bond yields is expected to provide relief for the short term.

 

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 levels before the war in West Asia.

 

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

 

"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."

 

South Korea's KOSPI gained almost 1% among Asian equity indices. All three major US indices closed lower Thursday with the S&P 500 shedding almost 1%.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: US indices end lower amid rising bond yields, higher oil prices

 

MUMBAI--0745 IST--US indices closed lower Thursday as bond yields rose once again and also as a rally in oil prices added to inflation worries. The Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed its peers and ended 1.32% lower. The S&P 500 closed 0.87% down, while the Nasdaq Composite ended 1% lower. 

 

Bond yields rose Thursday, with the yield on 10-year treasury notes gaining more than 5 basis points to 4.704%. The yield on 30-year treasury bonds rose more than 5 bps to 5.248%, reaching its highest level in 20 years, according to a report by CNBC. The US treasury department Wednesday said that it will double its repurchase of long-term debt over the next few months. The debt buyback operation could be more than $4 billion, said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to CNBC. 

 

Shares of Walmart fell more than 9% Thursday after the retail heavyweight missed Wall Street's expectations for its quarterly results as higher gasoline prices impacted retail spending, according to Reuters. This dragged down the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Other competitor retailers, like Costco, Dollar Tree, and Alberston, were also down 1–2%. Goldman Sachs fell more than 4% and put further pressure on the Dow.

 

Crude oil prices rose further on Thursday by around 2% to $93.78 per barrel, adding to the pressure. Oil prices were up more than 3?rly in the session after US President Donald Trump threatened Iran with the "MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY!" Bessent told CNBC that the president's comments were being misinterpreted. "I'm not sure why oil has popped up on this. If we are doing the maximum economic pressure, then that means that likely there will not be a large-scale kinetic restart," Bessent told CNBC. 

 

Following are the closing levels of major US indices Thursday:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
Dow Jones Industrial Average	52759.21	(-)1.32
NASDAQ Composite	26067.166	(-)1.00
S&P 500	7641.16	(-)0.87

 

(Vidhi Thacker)

 

US$1 = INR 95.70

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

 

Edited by Shubhayan Bhattacharya

 

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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