Buy or sell stocks, 18 May 2026: The Indian stock market is likely to begin the new trading week on a cautious to bearish note, with the Gift Nifty index is trading around the 23,525 zone, more than 175 points below Friday’s Nifty spot close of 23,643. Weak cues from broader Asian markets and rising geopolitical uncertainty are keeping sentiment under pressure in early trade.
Global risk appetite weakened sharply after fresh escalation fears emerged in the Middle East. U.S. President Donald Trump’s warning urging Iran to “get moving, FAST” has once again revived concerns around a possible disruption in global crude oil supply routes, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz. As a result, Asian markets opened broadly lower, with South Korea’s Kospi declining more than 3% while Japan’s Nikkei slipped over 200 points.
For Indian markets, the biggest concern continues to be elevated crude oil prices and currency pressure. Any further escalation in geopolitical tensions could push oil prices higher again, increasing the risk of imported inflation for an oil-dependent economy like India. This also keeps pressure on the Indian rupee and overall market sentiment.
Stock market today
Vaishali Parekh, Vice President — Technical Research at Prabhudas Lilladher, believes the Gift Nifty live chart is signalling a gap-down opening on Dalal Street, as the Gift Nifty live chart is trading more than 175 points below Friday’s Nifty spot close. She said the key benchmark index would have the near-term support around the 23,200 zone, which needs to be sustained to maintain the overall bias intact.
Speaking on the outlook of the Nifty 50 today, Vaishali Parekh said, “The Nifty 50 index would have the near-term support around the 23,200 zone, which needs to be sustained to maintain the overall bias intact, whereas on the upside, the 24,300 band shall be the tough resistance hurdle, which needs to be breached decisively to establish conviction and clarity.”
On the outlook for the Bank Nifty today, Parekh said the index is consolidating and would need a significant revival to move past the 50-EMA at 55,600 to improve the bias and establish conviction for a further upward move in the coming days.
“On the downside, a decisive breach below the 53,500 zone shall trigger fresh downside targets of 51,800 and the 50,000 levels in the coming days,” said Vaishali Parekh of Prabhudas Lilladher.
Vaishali Parekh’s stock recommendations for today
Regarding stocks to buy today, Vaishali Parekh recommended these three buy-or-sell stocks: Astrazeneca Pharma, Suzlon Energy, and Prism Johnson.
1] Astrazeneca Pharma: Buy at ₹8475, Target ₹8650, Stop Loss ₹8350;
2] Suzlon Energy: Buy at ₹53.80, Target ₹57, Stop Loss ₹52; and
3] Prism Johnson: Buy at ₹128, Target ₹133, Stop Loss ₹125.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
