GIFT Nifty hints at green opening for equities; South Korea central bank keeps rates unchanged
GIFT Nifty:
GIFT Nifty March 2026 futures were up 37.00 points, suggesting a green start for the Nifty 50 today.
Institutional Flows:
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 2,991.64 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 5,118.57 crore in the Indian equity market on 24 February 2026, provisional data showed.
The FIIs have bought shares worth Rs 4,361.57 crore in the cash market so far in February (till 25 February 2026). This is in contrast to their cash sales of Rs 41,435.22 crore in January 2026 and Rs 34,349.62 crore in December.
Global Markets:
Asia markets rose on Thursday, tracking Wall Street gains as strong earnings from Nvidia and Oracle lifted investor sentiment.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 1.1%, to hit an all-time high of 59,199.31, extending its winning streak of record highs to a third straight session. The broader Topix added 1.45%, also scaling a new peak.
On Wednesday, the Japanese government tapped Ayano Sato of Aoyama Gakuin University and Toichiro Asada of Chuo University as central bank board members, both dovish in their policy stance which aligns with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi?s approach as well.
The two will succeed outgoing central bank board members Asahi Noguchi and Junko Nakagawa, whose terms expire at the end of March and in June, respectively.
Japanese equities have scaled multiple record highs recently, buoyed by the so-called Takaichi trade,? as investors bet that the prime minister?s growth-oriented policies will lift stocks while pressuring the yen through looser monetary policy and increased fiscal spending.
Meanwhile, South Korea?s central bank stood pat on interest rates on Thursday and signalled policy would stay unchanged for the next six months as a chip boom in exports and steady inflation allow policymakers more time to assess financial stability risks.
The Bank of Korea?s seven-member monetary policy board voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.50%. The central bank raised this year?s growth forecast to 2.0% from 1.8% previously.
Overnight in the U.S., equities rose, supported by Nvidia and Oracle, as stocks built on the gains from the prior trading day.
The S&P 500 added 0.81% to close at 6,946.13, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.26% to 23,152.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 307.65 points, or 0.63%, to settle at 49,482.15.
Nvidia posted fiscal fourth-quarter results that topped widely reported expectations, fueled by a 75% surge in revenue from its core data center segment. Shares gained as much as 2% in extended trading following the release.
The company reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.62, beating the $1.53 forecast that was widely reported in the media. Revenue totaled $68.13 billion, above widely reported estimates of $66.21 billion.
Domestic Market:
The Indian equity benchmarks managed to claw back some ground on Wednesday, ending marginally in the green after a highly volatile session.
The Sensex finished with a slight gain of 50.15 points or 0.06% to settle at 82,276.07, while the Nifty 50 advanced 57.70 points or 0.23% to close at 25,482.35.
The day began with a strong relief rally, with the Sensex surging 732 points in morning trade as global market nerves eased following a 10% universal tariff implementation in the U.S., which was less severe than the 15% rate previously feared.
However, the indices surrendered most of these intraday gains due to heavy profit booking and persistent selling in heavyweights like Reliance Industries (down 2.23%) and State Bank of India (down 1.93%).
The recovery was primarily spearheaded by the Nifty Metal index, which soared on the back of strong performances from Tata Steel and National Aluminium Company. The IT sector, which had faced a brutal Claude Code rout in the previous session, staged a partial rebound, buoyed by value buying in Infosys and TCS.
Despite the positive close for the benchmarks, the broader market sentiment remained mixed as sectors such as FMCG, PSU Banks, and Realty ended in the red. Investors remained cautious ahead of the upcoming February 27th GDP data release, even as volatility, measured by the India VIX, cooled by nearly 5% to reflect a temporary stabilization in market sentiment.
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