First Tick: Top global cues to watch in today’s trade

Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday, lifted by gains in Nvidia, Amazon and other technology-related heavyweights following recent jitters about artificial intelligence

Indian equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, are likely to see a firm opening today, following gains in GIFT Nifty, which was trading higher at around 25,846.50.

Track the latest updates on GIFT Nifty right here on Moneycontrol.

Indian benchmark indices ended higher for the third consecutive session on February 18 in a volatile trade, with Nifty above 25,800 supported by broad-based buying across sectors, while IT stocks remained the sole laggard.

At close, the Sensex was up 283.29 points or 0.34 percent at 83,734.25, and the Nifty was up 93.95 points or 0.37 percent at 25,819.35.

GIFT Nifty (Gains)

The GIFT Nifty is trading higher at around 25,846.50, indicating a positive start for the day.

Asian Equities (Gain)

Asian stocks advanced after a rebound in tech and robust economic data boosted US equities. Oil held gains after its biggest jump since October.

US Equities (Up)

Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday, lifted by gains in Nvidia, Amazon and other technology-related heavyweights following recent jitters about artificial intelligence.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.56% to end the session at 6,881.31 points.

The Nasdaq gained 0.78% to 22,753.64 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.26% to 49,662.66 points.

Dollar Index (Up)

The dollar was off recent lows on Thursday and hanging on to a bounce after minutes from the Federal Reserve showed policymakers did not seem to be in a rush to cut interest rates and that several were open to hikes if inflation proved sticky.

US Bond Yield (Up)

The US Treasury 10-year yield rose 2 basis points to 4.08% and yield on US 2-year Treasury was up 4 basis points at 3.46%.

Asian Currencies (Down)

Asian currencies were trading mostly lower in the early Thursday trade with Taiwan Dollar leading the losers followed by Indonesian Rupiah, South Korean Won, Philippines Peso, China Renminbi, Malaysian Ringgit.

Crude (Flat)

Oil prices eased in early Asia trade on Thursday, following the previous day's 4% jump, as investors assessed efforts by the U.S. and Iran to resolve tensions while both sides have stepped up military activity in the key oil-producing region.

Gold (Down)

Gold steadied, after jumping 2% on Wednesday, with some Asian markets closed for Lunar New Year holidays and traders focused on the Federal Reserve’s next move on interest rates.

Fund Flow Action

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) extended their buying for the second consecutive session on February 18, purchasing equities worth ₹1,154 crore. Meanwhile, Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued their buying streak for the fifth straight day, acquiring equities worth ₹440 crore.

Hope you're all set for today's trade. We wish you a profitable day ahead.

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