Stock market today: Key things to know before the opening bell on February 12

Domestic benchmark indices are expected to open cautiously on Wednesday. Global market cues remained mixed on Tuesday after US markets closed lower, and Asian markets traded mixed on Wednesday morning. Crude oil prices snapped three-day gains to trade lower, and the US dollar advanced above 108 on the Fed Chairman’s commentary and tariff war threats.

The GIFT NIFTY futures traded 68 points higher at 23,194 at 8:00 a.m., indicating a positive yet cautious opening for Indian markets.

US Markets

The US markets closed largely mixed on Tuesday. The NASDAQ index fell 0.3%, and the Dow Jones and S&P500 closed flat-to-positive. Market participants weighed in on Jerome Powell's cautious stance on interest rate cuts and tariff war concerns.

Asian Markets

The Asian markets traded positively on Wednesday morning as Japanese, Chinese and Hong Kong indices traded in green with gains of up to 0.5%. The shares of Alibaba rocketed 7% on reports of collaboration with Apple in advancing AI technologies for their products.

Crude Oil

Crude oil prices fell, snapping a three-day rally, as US crude oil inventories came in higher than expected. API data revealed that US crude stocks surged by 9 million barrels last week, far exceeding the expected 2.8 million build. If official data later today confirms this, it would mark the largest increase in a year. The Brent and WTI crude oil prices traded flat at $76 and $73 per barrel on Wednesday morning.

FII and DII data

The foreign investors increased their short positions in the derivatives segment to 1.84 lakh contracts on Tuesday, indicating their pessimistic outlook for benchmark indices. In the equity market, they sold equities worth ₹4,486 crore, and domestic institutional investors bought equities worth ₹4,000 crore on Tuesday.

Chart check

The NIFTY50 and SENSEX closed below their 20SMA levels on Tuesday from above, indicating a bearish scenario for the market. Market participants and experts will look for support at the previous low levels of 22786 and 75,925.