NIFTY50, SENSEX today: Wall Street cues, FII activity, key things to know before markets open on March 17

The Indian equity benchmarks are set to open higher on Tuesday, March 17, as indicated by GIFT NIFTY futures. NIFTY futures at GIFT City in Ahmedabad rose 81 points or 0.35% to 23,510 amid positive cues from Asian markets.

The Indian equity benchmarks snapped their three-day losing streak on Monday, March 16, on account of a short covering rally in the last hour of trade. For most part of the day, equity benchmarks traded in a broad range amid heightened volatility with SENSEX swinging in the band of 1,855 points and NIFTY50 index touched an intraday high of 23,502 and low of 22,955.

The SENSEX ended 939 points or 1.26% higher at 75,502.85 and NIFTY50 index advanced 258 points or 1.11% to settle at 23,408.80 powered by gains in index heavyweights like HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, ITC, Ultratech Cement and Bajaj Finance.

Asian markets

Asian shares were trading higher on Tuesday with Japan's Nikkei rising 0.5%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advancing 1.15%, China's Shanghai Composite gaining 0.2% and South Korea's KOSPI rising 2.78%.

Markets are on edge, trying to price in the economic damage from U.S. President Donald Trump's war with Iran and the policy reaction it could trigger, news agency Reuters reported.

Wall Street update

Overnight, US stocks ended higher on Monday as oil prices eased in the international markets. Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.8%, S&P 500 index rose 1.01% and tech heavy Nasdaq rose 1.22%.

The worry in financial markets is that if the strait remains closed for a long time, it could keep enough oil off the market to drive inflation up to a debilitating level for the global economy, as per a report from AP.

FII/DII activity

Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth ₹9,365 crore on Monday while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth ₹12,593 crore, data from the National Stock Exchange showed.

The FIIs have so far this month sold shares worth ₹63,531 crore compared with shares worth ₹22,615 bought by them in February, according to the data from National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).

Stocks to watch

Upon the Composite Scheme becoming effective:

• AGTL and AEBPL shall be amalgamated into and with Adani Enterprises;

• All the equity shares issued by AGTL and held by ATL shall stand cancelled and extinguished;

• As consideration for the amalgamation of AEBPL, AEL shall issue and allot eleven equity shares, credited as fully paid-up, for every 553 equity shares of the face value of ₹10 each, fully paid-up, held by the shareholders of AEBPL;

• ATL shall be amalgamated into and with ANIL; and

• As consideration for the amalgamation of ATL, ANIL shall issue and allot one equity share, credited as fully paid-up, for every 10 equity shares of the face value of ₹1 each fully paid-up held by the shareholders of ATL.

Accordingly, the company is currently facing challenges in procuring ammonia, a key raw material used in the manufacture of methylamines, ethylamines, and their derivatives.

If approved, this would mark a new indication for ILUMYA following its US FDA approval in 2018 for the treatment of adults with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy. Scalp and nail plaque psoriasis sBLAs were approved in April 2024 and December 2025, respectively.

ILUMYA has also received marketing authorisation from over 55 worldwide health authorities since its original approval, including in India, Japan, the European Union, China, Australia, and Canada.

The 71 all-villa property, set within 76 acres of lush landscape near Madikeri and surrounded by coffee and spice plantations, will be unveiled as The Leela Coorg Forest Sanctuary later this year.

The price increase is being undertaken to partially offset the impact of rising commodity prices and other input costs, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The increase will vary, depending on the model and variant, it added.

Part of the $180 billion Tata Group, Tata Motors is India's largest manufacturer of utility vehicles, pick-ups, trucks, and buses.

International benchmark Brent crude gained 2.45% to $102.57 per barrel, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate rose 2.51% to $95.85 per barrel in the early morning trade.

The government had earlier permitted exports of 1.5 million tonnes for the season and in February allocated an extra 500,000 tonnes to willing mills on a non-swappable basis.

Mills had until February to apply for portions of the additional quota. Of the 500,000 tonnes, only 87,587 tonnes were requested and approved, with the remainder lapsing, the ministry stated.

Mills must export the allocated sugar by June 30, 2026. Those exporting at least 70% of their quota by that date will be allowed to ship the balance by September 30, 2026. Failure to meet the 70% threshold will result in the unutilised quantity lapsing, with potential reallocation to higher-performing or willing mills.

The collaboration will focus on assessing the potential development of an integrated rare earth value chain in Gujarat, including exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, and downstream applications.

The engagement will primarily explore opportunities associated with GMDC’s Ambadungar Rare Earth deposit, a strategic initiative aimed at strengthening India’s capabilities in the rare earths sector.

Based on the extant provisions of the Development Control and Promotion Regulations for Greater Mumbai, 2034, Oberoi Realty expects its share of the free sale component to be approximately 17.18 lakh square feet (RERA carpet area) (excluding its share of the rehab component for existing tenants) from the development of the Project Land, subject to statutory approvals and applicable regulations.

Trade setup

On the technical front, the NIFTY50 filled a crucial gap created on 12 April 2025 amid tariff reliefs. The index on the hourly charts closed above the 20 EMA levels in 10 sessions, indicating a reversal in the trend. The trend reversal can be confirmed if the index manages to close above the 50 EMA levels on Tuesday.

On the options data front, the 23,000 puts hold the highest open interest, indicating strong support for today's expiry. On the flipside, the 24,000 calls hold the highest open interest, indicating strong resistance on the upside.