The cues for Indian markets are negative this morning. The Asian markets are trading on a lower note, and US Futures are flat. Similarly, crude oil prices continue to trade above $90. The GIFT Nifty is indicating a quiet start for Indian markets. It is up 15 points or 0.05%.

Earlier on Thursday, the Nifty 50 closed the session 0.64% higher at 24,232, while the BSE Sensex closed 0.82% higher at 77,537.

Key global and domestic cues for August 21, 2026

Asia-Pacific markets traded on a lower note, tracking losses on Wall Street as US Treasury yields rebounded. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.92% while the Topix slipped 0.40%. The Kospi dropped 1.07%, while the small-cap Kosdaq declined 2.44%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 25,696, compared with the index’s last close of 25,698.49.

On Thursday, the US stock market closed on a lower note after the US longer-term yields rebounded. This raised concerns that higher borrowing costs will throw a wrench into the bull market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 703.84 points, or 1.32%, to close at 52,759.21. The S&P 500 lost 0.87% and closed at 7,641.16, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1% to settle at 26,067.17.

US Bond yields rebounded, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note climbed back above the level it was at just before the Treasury Department announced it would at least double the repurchase of 10-, 20- and 30-year debt in the next few months. The 10-year yield gained more than 5 basis points to 4.704%. The 30-year Treasury bond yield added more than 5 basis points to 5.248%. The 30-year yield spiked to its highest level in nearly 20 years earlier this week.

Crude oil prices surged after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the US will impose the toughest sanctions ever in history against Iran.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 0.47% to trade at $86.42 per barrel. On the other hand, Brent crude futures were trading 0.36% lower at $93.44, above the psychologically important level of $90. On COMEX, crude prices traded 2.70% higher at $87.83 a barrel.

On COMEX, the precious metal was trading at $4,568.40 an ounce, down 0.07%.

The rate for 24-carat gold today is Rs 1,59,580 per 10 grams. The price of gold has risen 0.94% from yesterday. The 24 kt gold rate today in Delhi is Rs 1,59,310 per 10 grams. The 18-carat gold price today in India is Rs 1,19,685. The 24-carat gold rate in Dubai today is Rs 1,49,590.

On COMEX, Silver prices traded 0.04% lower at $68.08 per troy ounce.

In India, the silver rate rose 2.76% to Rs 2.44 lakh per kilogram.

Silver had surged to record highs in January amid geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty, with heavy speculative buying pushing prices higher, but soon faced volatility.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers of shares worth Rs 583.36 crore. On the other hand, the Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of shares worth Rs 3,537.71 crore on August 20, 2026, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the dollar’s value against a basket of six foreign currencies, was trading 0.05% lower at 98.82. The index evaluates the strength or weakness of the US dollar in comparison to major currencies. The basket contains currencies such as the British Pound, Euro, Swedish Krona, Japanese Yen, Swiss Franc, etc. The rupee appreciated 0.06% to close at 95.71 to the dollar on August 20.

The Consumer Durables sector’s stocks surged the most in Thursday’s trade, rising 2.42% in market capitalisation. Further, Glass stocks were followed by the Telecommunications sector stocks, which were further followed by the Restaurant stocks. However, the Metals – Non Ferrous sector stocks fell the most, declining 2.46%.