Opening Bell - Morning Commentary

AI Anxiety Hits Wall Street

Wall Street ended sharply lower on Tuesday as investors worried that AI could create more competition for software makers, keeping them on edge ahead of quarterly reports from Alphabet and Amazon later this week.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1.4% as software stocks extended losses, Anthropic's launch of workplace productivity tools intensified worries, with the sector shedding approximately $300 billion in market value.

Walmart became the first retailer ever to hit $1 trillion in market valuation on Tuesday, riding on a year-long rally that has seen its shares rise nearly 26%, placing it among the ranks of Big Tech heavyweights such as Nvidia and Alphabet.

Crude oil rose 1.25% to $64.00 per barrel after initially falling on reports of potential US-Iran nuclear negotiations resuming in Turkey. The US shot down an Iranian drone and remains cautious about armed boats, while the India-US trade deal could redirect Russian oil flows and tighten supply elsewhere.

The Nifty opened with its largest single-day absolute gain of over 1,200 points yesterday, fueled by the long-awaited US tariff cuts on Indian imports.

The index settled up 639 points at 25,727, marking its highest one-day percentage gain since May 12, 2025. Bank Nifty touched a fresh all-time high of 61,764 and closed with a robust 2.4% advance.

The Indian Rupee delivered its biggest single-day gain since December 18, 2018, closing at 90.27 vs. USD—its highest in three weeks—driven by "risk-on" sentiment and exporter dollar unwinding post-trade deal news.

Nifty's 1770 point recovery from the recent swing low of 24,571 has reclaimed levels above the 20, 50, 100, and 200-day EMAs, confirming a bullish trend reversal across timeframes. Nifty’s Key support lies in the 25,500–25,650 band, with resistance at 25,863 and 26,373.

Indian markets are positioned to open modestly lower on cautious global cues.