On Friday, December 12, the Sensex and Nifty 50 are poised for a strong opening, supported by upbeat global cues after the Dow closed at record highs overnight following the US Federal Reserve’s rate cut.
The GIFT Nifty was trading near the 26,126 mark, showing a premium of about 100 points, indicating a positive start to Indian markets.
In early trade, the majority of Asian markets traded in green.
Amid rising speculation around a potential India–US trade agreement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump held a phone conversation on Thursday to review progress in the strategic partnership.
Both leaders discussed expanding cooperation in key areas such as trade, advanced technologies, defence, energy and security. They expressed satisfaction with the strengthening bilateral relationship and stressed the importance of maintaining momentum in efforts to enhance trade ties.
On Thursday, December 11, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers, selling equities worth ₹2,020.94 crore. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) continued their positive stance, buying equities worth ₹3,796.07 crore, marking their 35th consecutive session of net inflows.
Indian equity benchmarks closed higher on Thursday, December 11, after the Federal Reserve announced a 25 bps rate cut, lifting global sentiment. The Nifty 50 rose 140.55 points (0.55%) to 25,898.55, while the Sensex gained 426.86 points (0.51%) to 84,818.13, snapping a three-day losing streak. India VIX eased 4.7% as market volatility dipped.
Meanwhile, Broader markets outperformed, with the Nifty Midcap 100 up 0.97% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 advancing 0.81%. Sectorally, 10 of 11 indices closed in the green. Nifty Auto and Nifty Metal gained 1.11% and 1.06%, respectively, driven by softer US dollar-led support for metal prices, while Nifty Media was the only laggard, slipping 0.09%.
US markets advanced on Thursday, with the Dow finishing at fresh record highs after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates and delivered a more dovish-than-expected outlook. The S&P 500 closed at a one-month high as investors shifted money into financial and material stocks amid worries about expensive valuations in leading AI names. The Nasdaq, however, ended lower, pressured by a selloff in tech shares following soft guidance from Oracle.
Despite the drag from technology, the S&P 500 financials index climbed 1.8%, while materials rose 2.2%. The Dow surged 646.26 points (1.34%) to 48,704.01, the S&P 500 advanced 14.32 points (0.21%) to 6,901.00, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 60.30 points (-0.25%) to 23,593.86.
The US trade gap unexpectedly contracted in September to its smallest level since 2020, according to delayed government data released Thursday. Imports saw only a marginal rise as the latest round of Trump tariffs began taking effect, while exports grew 3.0% to $289.3 billion. Overall, the deficit narrowed 10.9% to $52.8 billion, marking a pandemic-era low.
U.S. Labor Department data shows initial jobless claims jumped to 236,000 for the week ending 6 December, signalling rising layoffs and a cooling labour market, though continuing claims fell sharply to 18.38 lakh—the lowest since mid-April. The unemployment rate stands at 4.4%, and with weakening labour conditions, the Fed has cut rates for the third straight time to help stabilise the job market.
The dollar fell sharply on Thursday, extending the previous session’s decline and dropping to October lows against the euro, Swiss franc and pound. The franc strengthened after the Swiss National Bank left rates unchanged, pushing the dollar down 0.6% to its weakest level since mid-November.
US Treasury yields also declined for a second day following the Fed’s policy announcement.
Gold pulled back slightly on Friday after touching a seven-week high a day earlier, as traders locked in profits. Spot gold eased 0.2% to $4,277.64 per ounce.
Silver retreated 0.5% to $63.31 after briefly hitting a record $64.31 on Thursday. Despite the dip, silver remains one of the strongest performers this year, surging 119% driven by rising industrial demand, tightening supply, and its recent addition to the US critical minerals list.
Oil prices rebounded from their lowest close in nearly two months, supported by improving sentiment across global markets. West Texas Intermediate moved toward $58 a barrel after a 1.5% drop in the previous session, while Brent held above $61.
The bounce came despite a largely bearish outlook, with crude prices still down about 20% for the year due to fears of oversupply. The International Energy Agency reiterated its projection of a record surplus—slightly reduced from last month’s estimate—and noted that global inventories are now at a four-year high.
Disclaimer: The article is for informational purposes only and not investment advice.
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