Why is the Indian stock market opening lower today?

Mumbai, May 22 (NationPress) The domestic benchmark indices commenced the day on a downbeat note on Thursday as negative global signals prompted selling activity in the IT and automobile sectors during the initial trading hours.

By approximately 9:26 AM, the Sensex was down by 726.42 points or 0.89 percent, sitting at 80,870.21, while the Nifty fell by 225.0 points or 0.91 percent, reaching 24,588.45.

The Nifty Bank index saw a decrease of 336.20 points or 0.61 percent, trading at 54,738.90. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was at 56,312.00, down by 307.60 points or 0.54 percent. Meanwhile, the Nifty Smallcap 100 index registered a decline to 17,509.10, falling by 39.50 points or 0.23 percent.

Analysts indicate that a breakout above or below the range of the inside bar could provide clear directional signals. On the downside, 24,600 is identified as critical immediate support, with stronger support around 24,500. A breakdown below this threshold could intensify selling pressure, potentially pulling the Nifty index towards the 24,300–24,000 range.

Conversely, on the upside, 24,900 serves as initial resistance, while 25,000 stands as a significant psychological barrier. A decisive move above this point may ignite a bullish rally towards the 25,200–25,500 region,” stated Mandar Bhojane, an Equity Research Analyst at Choice Broking.

In the Sensex pack, only Adani Ports and Tata Steel emerged as the top gainers. On the other hand, Indusind Bank, Tech Mahindra, Powergrid, HCL Tech, Nestle India, and Hindustan Unilever Limited were the leading losers.

Across Asian markets, indices in China, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Seoul, and Japan were trading in the negative, while Jakarta managed to trade in the positive.

In the previous trading session, the Dow Jones in the US closed at 41,860.44, down by 816.80 points, or 1.91 percent. The S&P 500 ended with a decline of 95.85 points, or 1.61 percent, at 5,844.61, and the Nasdaq closed at 18,872.64, down 270.07 points, or 1.41 percent.

Wall Street encountered significant losses during Wednesday's session due to a convergence of multiple headwinds affecting investor sentiment.

“The major indices rebounded from initial losses but fell back into negative territory as the day unfolded, ultimately ending sharply lower despite recovering from their worst levels,” experts remarked.

On the institutional front, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers, acquiring equities worth 2,201.79 crore on May 21, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities totaling 683.77 crore.