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Stock Market Today: At approximately 6:34 AM, GIFT Nifty futures were trading at 26,252.50, down 35.50 points or 0.14 percent, indicating that Indian benchmark indices would have a muted opening on Thursday, October 23. The cautious trading environment is a sharp contrast to the euphoria of Wednesday night, when the GIFT Nifty jumped nearly 400 points, or 1.5%, to trade close to 26,300, driven by hopes of a possible trade agreement between the US and India. However, all of those gains have since been totally erased as Wall Street's disappointing corporate earnings and weak global cues dampened investor sentiment overnight.​

GIFT Nifty futures at 26,252.50 indicate a flat to marginally lower opening for Indian markets, a stark contrast to the bullish momentum witnessed just hours ago. The sharp reversal came after US President Donald Trump's remarks about working on a trade deal with India had initially sparked hopes that tariffs on Indian exports could drop to 15-16 per cent from the current 50 per cent.

The rally, however, was short-lived as weakness in the global market took over. The index is currently near its highest point ever, 26,277. Thursday's trading session will probably reveal whether bulls can maintain their momentum or if profit booking will cause the index to decline.​

Wall Street closed in negative territory on Wednesday, with all major indices ending in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 334.33 points or 0.71 per cent to close at 46,611.41. The S&P 500 settled at 6,749.25, losing ground after its recent rally to record highs. In early Thursday trading, Dow Futures were trading at 46,531.70, down 58.70 points or 0.13 per cent, suggesting further weakness ahead for US equities. Corporate earnings remained in focus, with disappointing results from major companies weighing on investor sentiment and triggering a selloff in technology stocks that ultimately wiped out the gains in GIFT Nifty.​

Asian markets opened sharply lower on Thursday, tracking the negative sentiment from Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 index plunged 650.31 points or 1.32 per cent to trade at 48,657.48. South Korea's KOSPI fell 10.83 points or 0.28 per cent to 3,872.85. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 245.79 points or 0.94 per cent to 25,781.77.

European indices also closed in negative territory on Wednesday evening. Germany's DAX index fell 178.90 points or 0.74 per cent to settle at 24,151.13. France's CAC 40 declined 51.99 points or 0.63 per cent to 8,206.87. However, the UK's FTSE 100 bucked the trend, gaining 88.01 points or 0.93 per cent to close at 9,515.00, showing resilience amid broader market weakness.​

Abhay Shukla is a Senior Sub-Editor at Zee Business, where he covers the stock markets, corporate news, personal finance, technology, and auto sectors.

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