GIFT NIFTY futures hint flat opening on November 12; what investors need to track before stock market open

Equity futures indicate a flat opening for the Indian benchmark indices on Thursday, November 12, after the healthy gains in the previous market session, as investors now focus on monitoring global market sentiment and the sustainability of FII buying amid volatile crude oil prices.

As of 7:38 am (IST), the GIFT NIFTY futures were trading 0.05% lower at 25,246.50 points ahead of Thursday’s opening bell, indicating a potential for the benchmark index to open flat or weak in comparison to the previous close levels, with investors trading cautiously amid evolving global market sentiment.

NSE data showed that the NIFTY50 index ended 0.84% higher at 25,255 points after the trading session on Wednesday, in comparison to 25,044.65 points at the previous equity market close.

The BSE SENSEX closed 0.95% higher at 81,879.40 points after the trading session on November 11, in comparison to 81,106.65 points at the previous stock market close, as per the exchange data.

Both the benchmark indices touched their highest level in the past nine months, with NIFTY50 rising to an intraday high of 25,424 as the return of FII buying in Indian equities supported the gains.

On Thursday’s market, investors are expected to trade cautiously with a key focus on the buying or selling momentum in the market after yesterday’s intraday rally. Crude oil prices and cues from Asian markets and West Asia will remain a key focus for traders.

Key things to track before market opens

₹60,698 crore FII inflows in 11 days

So far, FIIs have invested ₹60,698 crore worth of net investment in Indian equities during the first 11 days of November 2026, after two months of consistent selling pressure starting in September and eventually fading towards the end of October this year.

Latest NSE provisional data showed that Foreign investors, or FIIs, have maintained their buying momentum in Indian equities, purchasing a little more than ₹12,563 crore worth of capital market assets in a single day on Wednesday, November 11.

In contrast, domestic investors continued to book profits, selling ₹8,434.53 crore worth of assets during the trading session on Nov 11.

Asian markets today

Asian market indices were trading on a mixed note during the early hours of Thursday, November 12, as investors continued to monitor the momentum cues from the previous Wall Street close and the lower crude oil price in the market.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.54%, Shanghai Composite was up 0.07%, and KOSPI was up 0.42% as of the morning hour India time. In contrast, the Hang Seng was down 1%, and Singapore’s FTSE was down 0.16% on Thursday’s market.

Nvidia crashes over 8%

Global AI chipmaking major Nvidia shares crashed to end 8.6% lower during after-hours trading on Nasdaq on Wednesday, as the latest media reports suggest that the company’s board is reportedly preparing to remove CEO Jensen Huang following the recent alleged involvement with an employee.

Nvidia’s crash during the post-market hours has the potential to impact the overall sector, as investors await further updates, with the board of directors likely to meet soon to reportedly decide Jensen Huang’s future at the company.

Crude oil trades above $91/bbl

Global crude oil prices (Brent) were trading above $91 per barrel (bbl) during the early market hours on Thursday, India time, as investors focused on the US pausing their attacks in West Asia while the Houthis claimed the recent missile attacks on Saudi Arabia.

Brent crude oil (January futures) was trading 0.85% lower at $91.83 per bbl as of 7:29 am (IST), in comparison to $92.62 per bbl at the previous equity market close, according to Investing.com data.

Latest media reports suggest that the Houthis launched two ballistic missiles against Saudi Arabia, which were intercepted by the country’s air defence systems in the Mecca region.

This comes at a time when the United States is maintaining its stance of “no need for major combat operations” in Iran, as America’s economic pressure campaign was reportedly working well for the peace deal negotiations.

Wall Street recap

US equity market indices surged to end higher, with S&P and Nasdaq posting significant intraday gains on Wednesday, November 11, as investors carried out value buying in the AI and tech sector stocks after the latest corrections in the market.

Investors have likely shrugged off inflation concerns in the US economy, while accepting that the US Fed's policy outcome is potentially going to be a further rate hike at the December meeting.

Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.49% higher at 52,486.49 points after the trading session on Wednesday, in comparison to 52,231.89 points at the previous equity market close, according to MarketWatch data.

The S&P 500 index closed 1.31% higher at 7,619.38 points after the market session on November 11, compared to 7,520.93 points at the previous US equity market close, as per the data.

Similarly, the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index also rallied to end 2.28% higher at 28,374.25 points as of Wednesday’s trading session, in comparison to 27,740.80 points at the previous Wall Street close.