The Gift Nifty is trading 350 points lower in late trading on Thursday, 5 March, indicating that markets could resume their losing streak when trading opens on Friday, 6 March.
After a three-day brutal sell-off that wiped out billions of investors’ wealth, Indian benchmark indices staged a strong recovery in today’s session, with the rally led by metal and auto stocks, but those gains appear to be short-lived, given the weak indication from the Gift Nifty.
The war in the Middle East, which was triggered after the US and Israel killed Iran’s supreme leader and top military officials, entered its sixth day on 5 March, with Tehran continuing its attacks on US forces in Iraq and Kuwait and struck an oil tanker in the Persian Gulf, while Israel reportedly said it carried out a twelfth wave of airstrikes on the Iranian capital, hitting military and intelligence assets.
As the war shows no signs of abating, Brent crude jumped 3% to $85 per barrel, approaching its highest level since July 2024.
Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — the world’s most vital transit route for crude oil — had come to a halt after an Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander threatened to set fire to ships attempting the route.
Ship-tracking data now shows around 300 oil tankers currently inside the Strait of Hormuz, with traffic in and out of the chokepoint all but halted following the outbreak of the war, according to Reuters.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said that the US is preparing to provide risk insurance and escorts for ships in the Persian Gulf to ensure traffic can move through the Strait of Hormuz. However, the White House has so far not provided additional details on this.
Meanwhile, earlier this week, QatarGas announced that it has stopped LNG output at its main facility after military attacks. This is Qatar’s main LNG facility and handles 82 mmtpa of LNG, or about 25% of global LNG supply.
US stock market today
The US key averages saw renewed selling in today’s session, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 900 points, or 1.8%, at the day’s low of 47,834, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite dipped 1% and 0.40% respectively.
Investors await key economic data, with initial jobless claims due later today, while the more critical unemployment rate and nonfarm payrolls numbers are scheduled for tomorrow, which will provide cues about the Federal Reserve System’s rate-cut outlook.
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