Markets at close: Indian equity benchmarks ended Friday’s session on a positive note. The Sensex closed at 82,814.71, up 316.57 points or 0.38%, while the Nifty settled at 25,571.25, gaining 116.90 points or 0.46%.
Markets at 1.20 PM: The indices are trading on a steady note. The Nifty 50 was trading up 88 points or 0.35% at 25,542, while the BSE Sensex was up 218 points or 0.26% to trade at 82,716.
Markets at 11 AM: The domestic equity indices shrugged off early jitters to trade in the green. The Nifty 50 rose 134 points or 0.52% to trade at 25,588, while the BSE Sensex surged 378 points or 0.46% to trade at 82,876.
Markets today at open: Indian equity indices opened Friday’s trade on a lower note amid rising US-Iran tension. The Nifty 50 opened 65 points or 0.25% lower at 25,390, while the BSE Sensex dropped 265 points or 0.32% to open at 82,232.
“Following a brief pause, the Nifty index has resumed its decline toward the gap zone created during the February 3 rally. We expect this downward momentum to continue, with the index likely testing the 25,000 spot level in the near term. We suggest traders maintain a ‘sell on rise’ approach as long as the Nifty remains below the 25,800 spot level on a closing basis,” said Vipin Kumar, Assistant Vice President of Technical Research at Globe Capital.
Markets ahead of opening: The global markets are trading on a lower note due to renewed geopolitical tensions. The GIFT Nifty fell 37 points or 0.15% to trade at 25,367. Here are domestic as well as other key global cues to watch before the market opens that include Gold, Silver, crude oil prices, FII and DII data, business groups that most affect, sectoral performance, etc.
Earlier on Thursday, the NSE Nifty 50 closed the session 365 points or 1.41% lower at 25,454, while the BSE Sensex dipped 1,236 points or 1.48% to close at 82,498.
Key global and domestic cues to know on February 20, 2025
Asian Markets
The Asian indices were trading mainly on a lower note on Friday morning following a fall on Wall Street overnight. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 1.04%, while the Topix was 1.12% lower. South Korea’s Kospi bucked the trend to rise 0.66%, but the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.19%. Mainland China and Hong Kong markets remained closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.
US markets
The US markets closed Thursday’s trade on a lower note, as investors sold off financials and monitored rising tensions between the US and Iran. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 267.50 points, or 0.54%, settling at 49,395.16. The broad-based S&P 500 slipped 0.28% and ended at 6,861.89. The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.31% and closed at 22,682.73.
US-Iran conflict
President Donald Trump warned Iran on Thursday that it must make a deal over its nuclear program or “really bad things” will happen, and set a deadline of 10 to 15 days, drawing a threat from Tehran to retaliate against US bases in the region if attacked.
Amid a massive US military buildup in the Middle East that has fueled fears of a wider war, Trump said negotiations with Iran to end the tense standoff were going well but demanded that Tehran reach a “meaningful” agreement.
Tech ADRs
The American Depository Receipts (ADRs) of Indian tech companies dropped once again. Infosys fell the most, declining 3.32% to close at $14.55, while Wipro slipped 2.61% to settle at $2.240.
Gold rate today
The rate for 24-carat gold today is Rs 1,54,790 per 10 grams. The price of gold has risen by 0.62% from yesterday. The 24 kt gold rate today in Delhi is Rs 1,54,520 per 10 grams. The 18-carat gold price today in India is Rs 1,16,092.5. The 24-carat gold rate in Dubai today is Rs 1,49,590. On the MCX, the precious metal for the April delivery was trading at a price of Rs 1.54 lakh per 10 grams, ending the trade on a flat note.
Silver rate today
In India, the silver rate fell 0.45% to Rs 2.42 lakh per kilogram. On COMEX, Silver prices rose almost 1% on Friday to trade at $78.430. Silver had surged to record highs in January amid geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty, and concerns over the Federal Reserve’s independence, with heavy speculative buying—especially from China—pushing prices higher.
FII, DII data
Foreign institutional investors (FII) were the net sellers of shares worth Rs 880.49 crore. On the other hand, the Domestic institutional investors (DII) were the net sellers of shares worth Rs 596.28 crore on February 18, 2025, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.
Crude oil
Crude oil prices traded on a higher note on Friday morning as US-Iran tensions rose. WTI crude prices were trading at $66.63, rising 0.35%, while Brent crude prices were trading at $71.82, a rise of 0.22%.
US dollar
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the dollar’s value against a basket of six foreign currencies, was up 0.08% at 97.90. The index evaluates the strength or weakness of the US dollar in comparison to major currencies. The basket contains currencies such as the British Pound, Euro, Swedish Krona, Japanese Yen, Swiss Franc, etc. The rupee appreciated 0.02% to close at 90.67 to the dollar on February 18.
Top sectors in Thursday’s trade
The Electronics sector’s stocks fell the most in Thursday’s trade, declinig 3.8% in the market capitalisation. Further, Transport stocks were followed by the Aquaculture sector stocks, which were further followed by the Space stocks.