NIFTY50, SENSEX today: Wall Street cues, US-Iran war, FII activity, key things to know before markets open on March 2

The Indian equity benchmarks are set to open lower on Monday, March 2, as indicated by GIFT NIFTY futures. NIFTY futures at GIFT City in Ahmedabad fell 172 points to 25,164 amid weak cues from global markets.

The SENSEX and NIFTY50, plunged on Friday amid weak global cues, geopolitical uncertainty, and a broad-based sell-off.

The indices posted their worst trading day in a week, with the SENSEX dropping as much as 1,089.01 points to a low of 81,159.15. The NIFTY50 touched a trough of 25,141.30.

The NIFTY 50 fell by 317.90 points or 1.25% to close at 25,178.65. Meanwhile, the SENSEX plunged 961.42 points or 1.17% to end at 81,287.19.

Asian markets

Asian markets were trading lower while crude oil prices jumped after United States and Israel attack on Iran killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Japan's Nikkei dropped 1.5%, China's Shanghai Composite declined 0.24% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 2.4%.

The prices of crude oil in the international market surged in the early trade on Monday, March 2, following the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

The oil prices spiked as the US and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory strikes against Israel and US military installations around the Gulf sent disruptions through the global energy supply chain.

The conflict, following the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has raised concerns over energy supplies.

Oil futures surged more than 8%, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude last trading at $72.52 per barrel and Brent crude at $79.04 per barrel.

Wall Street update

US stocks dropped Friday as Wall Street kept punishing companies that could become losers in the artificial-intelligence revolution, news agency AP reported.

Dow Jones declined 1.05%, S&P 500 fell 0.43% and tech heavy Nasdaq dropped 0.92%.

FII/DII activity

Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth ₹7,536 crore on Friday while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth ₹12,293 crore, data from the National Stock Exchange showed.

The FIIs bought shares worth ₹22,615 crore in February compared with shares worth ₹35,962 sold by them in January, according to the data from National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).

Stocks to watch

Leading automakers Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Hyundai reported an increase in vehicle dispatches to dealers in February, riding on sustained demand in the domestic market.

Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India said its domestic passenger vehicle sales rose to 1,61,000 units last month against 1,60,791 units in February 2025.

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles reported a 34 per cent rise in passenger vehicle dispatches at 62,329 units last month, as against 46,435 units in the year-ago period.

Mahindra & Mahindra said its utility vehicle sales in the domestic market last month increased 19 per cent to 60,018 units compared to 50,420 units in the year-ago period.

M&M CEO, Automotive Division, Nalinikanth Gollagunta, said the February performance reflected "robust customer demand across the portfolio".

Hyundai Motor India said its domestic sales grew 10 per cent year on year to 52,407 units in February.

The company's MD and CEO, Tarun Garg, said, "We kicked off 2026 on a high note, achieving our highest-ever monthly sales in January, and the momentum continues in February."

Following the arrest, a special board meeting was convened wherein Ketan Merchant, chief financial officer of the bank, was appointed as head of the organisation to carry on and oversee day-to-day operations, Fino Payments Bank said in a regulatory filing.

Gupta has been "arrested under the provisions of Sections 132(1)(a) and 132(1)(i) of the CGST and SGST Act, 2017", it said.

The investigation is related to business partner(s) of the bank, and not GST compliance by it, the bank said.

The inspection concluded with four observations. We will respond to the US FDA within the stipulated timelines.

In another development, BSE has sought clarification from the company following a news report titled "Aurobindo Pharma's P. Sarath Chandra Reddy acquitted in Delhi Liquor Scam case".

The project is centrally located and seamlessly links Chennai’s Central Business District (CBD) and the rapid-growth IT Corridor of Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR).

The subsidiary was incorporated in India to set up state-of-the-art, advanced heterogeneous packaging and 3D packaging OSAT (Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Testing).

Trade setup

On the technical front, Monday’s closing became more important as NIFTY50 closed below the long-term moving average of 200 EMA. A closing below the 200 EMA would confirm the bearish setup for the NIFTY50 in the near term and could intensify the selling pressure in the benchmark and broader indices as well.

On the options data front, the 25,500 calls hold the highest open interest on the upside, indicating a strong resistance for today’s weekly expiry. On the flipside, the 25,000 puts hold the highest open interest, indicating a near-term support for the NIFTY50 on Monday.