Stock Market Today, 21 October 2026: GIFT Nifty Points Higher, Sensex and Nifty Pre-Market Cues, FII DII Data and Stocks to Watch

NSE pre-market report · Data as of 8:30 AM IST · NSE and BSE open at 9:15 AM IST

Good morning, and welcome back after the Dussehra break. Let us have a quick chai-and-charts chat before the bell. The share market today restarts after a two-day gap, and the last session we saw was Monday, when banking and IT stocks dragged the index down more than a percent. The good news from the overnight screens is that GIFT Nifty today is pointing to a firmer opening, and Asian markets, especially Korea, have bounced back smartly. The not-so-good news is that Brent crude is sitting above $110 a barrel because of trouble around the Strait of Hormuz, and that is never comfortable for an oil-importing country like ours.

So here is everything on the table for Nifty 50 and Sensex watchers: global cues, the FII DII data from Monday, the stocks in the news, and where this week’s F&O expiry falls. People often google “Nifty prediction today” at this hour. We don’t make predictions. What we can do is lay out the data clearly and let you read it yourself.

Also on today’s calendar: the Jio Platforms IPO opens for subscription, which is the biggest issue Dalal Street has seen in a long while.

1. Global Market Cues Today: US Markets, Asian Markets, Crude Oil and Rupee

Wall Street had a split session on Tuesday, 20 October. The Dow Jones jumped over 500 points and small-caps did even better, but the Nasdaq ended flat as technology shares stayed heavy.

Asian markets are in a much better mood this morning. Chip and AI-linked stocks, which had been hammered earlier in the month, found buyers. Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Kioxia and SoftBank were all up sharply in early trade.

By around 8:10 AM IST the Kospi’s gain had widened to roughly 4.4% and the Nikkei was holding about 1.2% higher. Hong Kong and Shanghai figures were not available at the time of writing, so we have left them out rather than guess. For reference, on Tuesday the Nikkei had closed at 64,075.42 (−1.30%) and the Kospi at 5,552.74 (−3.73%).

Crude is the one to keep an eye on. Reports of repeated tanker attacks near the Strait of Hormuz have pushed Brent to around a five-month high. India imports most of its oil, so a sustained rise feeds into inflation, the rupee and the margins of paint, tyre, aviation and chemical companies. On the other side, oil producers like ONGC and Oil India tend to see the opposite effect.

2. GIFT Nifty Today (SGX Nifty): The First Pre-Market Indicator

What is GIFT Nifty? It is the Nifty futures contract traded at GIFT City in Gandhinagar. It used to be called SGX Nifty when it traded in Singapore. Because it runs for far longer hours than our cash market, it is the first rough hint of where Nifty may open. A hint, not a promise.

Different data providers were showing GIFT Nifty between roughly 23,006 and 23,035 in the 7:30–8:15 AM IST window, so treat the exact number as approximate. The direction is the useful part: a gap-up start is indicated. Remember that the opening tick and the closing level are two very different things, and plenty of gap-up mornings have finished in the red.

3. Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex Today: Previous Close

Monday, 19 October was a rough day. Private banks and IT stocks did the damage, while PSU banks were the lone bright spot after September-quarter earnings.

On the week: the previous week, ending Friday 16 October, was actually the best in six months, with the Sensex up 413.66 points (+0.60%) at 74,729.27 and the Nifty up 148.80 points (+0.65%) at 23,146.15. This week has only one session on the board so far, Monday, and it gave back more than all of that: Nifty −1.11%, Sensex −1.17%.

Market breadth was clearly negative: about 2,925 stocks declined against 1,163 that advanced, with 181 unchanged.

Nifty Support and Resistance Levels for Today

These are simply the levels market analysts have said they are watching. They are for reference, not forecasts, and nobody can tell you where the index will actually go.

India VIX is the volatility index, sometimes called the fear gauge. When it rises, traders are paying more for protection, which usually means they expect bigger swings. At 14.69 it is still fairly calm by historical standards, though Monday’s 4.5% jump shows some nerves crept in.

4. FII DII Data Today: Monday, 19 October 2026 (₹ Crore)

A quick explainer first. FII means Foreign Institutional Investor, the overseas funds. DII means Domestic Institutional Investor, which is our own mutual funds, insurance companies and pension funds. “Gross buy” is everything they bought, “gross sell” is everything they sold, and “net” is the difference. The pattern through October has been very consistent: foreigners selling, domestic funds absorbing.

So for the month so far, FIIs have pulled out close to ₹50,000 crore from the cash market while DIIs have put in slightly more than that. That tug-of-war is a big reason the index has moved sideways-to-down rather than falling off a cliff. Note that these are provisional cash-market numbers and get revised; they also do not include FII activity in the F&O segment or in primary issues like IPOs.

5. Stocks in News Today: Stocks to Watch on 21 October 2026

These are factual observations only, drawn from results, corporate announcements and order wins. Nothing here is a recommendation.

Ex-dividend today (21 October): Elecon Engineering (interim ₹0.50 per share), ICICI Prudential Asset Management (interim ₹30 per share), Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (interim ₹3 per share). On the ex-date, the share price typically adjusts downward by roughly the dividend amount, so do not be alarmed by the gap on your screen.

6. Key Events Today: Jio Platforms IPO Opens, Q2 Earnings and Crude Oil

Jio Platforms IPO is the headline event. Subscription opens today and the details are as follows.

Other things on the radar today:

• Around 40 companies report Q2FY27 results, including Adani Green Energy, Eternal, Indian Hotels, M&M Financial Services, SRF, KEI Industries, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, PC Jeweller, Vishal Mega Mart and Mahindra Holidays & Resorts.
• Crude oil headlines out of the Gulf, including reported tanker attacks near the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting drop in shipped volumes.
• Rupee movement and foreign fund flows, both sensitive to the oil story.
• Looking ahead: the EAAA India Alternatives IPO opens on 26 October, and NSE and BSE will hold the Diwali Muhurat trading session on Sunday, 8 November 2026.

Macro background worth remembering: India’s September CPI inflation came in at 5.54%, with food inflation at 7.74%, and the IMF has raised its India FY27 GDP growth forecast to 7% from 6.4%.

7. F&O Today: Nifty Expiry, Open Interest and F&O Ban List

When is expiry this week? Nifty weekly options expire on Tuesdays. Tuesday 20 October was the Dussehra holiday, so that contract settled on the previous trading day, Monday 19 October. The next Nifty expiry is Tuesday, 27 October, which happens to be the last Tuesday of the month and is therefore also the monthly F&O expiry. Sensex weekly contracts expire on Thursdays, so the next Sensex expiry is tomorrow, 22 October.

Jargon, explained simply. Open interest, or OI, is the number of contracts currently outstanding. The strike with the highest call OI is where option writers have taken the most positions betting the index stays below, so it often acts as a ceiling. The strike with the highest put OI works the other way, as a floor. The put-call ratio, or PCR, divides put OI by call OI; below 1 means more call writing than put writing, which is usually read as cautious. Max pain is the strike at which option buyers collectively lose the most, which is simply where the largest pile of premium sits. All of these are observations about positioning, not forecasts of where the index will go.

What is the F&O ban list? MWPL stands for Market Wide Position Limit, the cap NSE sets on total outstanding derivative positions in a stock. Once open interest crosses 95% of that cap, the stock enters a ban period, and traders can only reduce existing positions, not create new ones. The ban lifts once OI falls back below 80%. Being in the ban list says nothing about whether a company is good or bad; it is purely a position-limit matter. It does tend to make the stock jumpier, though, because fresh hedging is blocked.

FAQs: Share Market Today (21 October 2026)

What is GIFT Nifty today?

GIFT Nifty was around 23,015, up about 83 points or 0.35%, in the 8:10 AM IST window, pointing to a positive start for the Nifty 50. Readings between roughly 23,006 and 23,035 were visible across different providers. GIFT Nifty is the Nifty futures contract traded at GIFT City, formerly known as SGX Nifty.

What were the Nifty 50 and Sensex closing levels in the last session?

In the last trading session, Monday 19 October 2026, the Nifty 50 closed at 22,888.95, down 257.20 points or 1.11%. The BSE Sensex closed at 73,852.90, down 876.37 points or 1.17%. Markets were shut on Tuesday 20 October for Dussehra.

What are the Nifty support and resistance levels today?

Analysts quoted this morning are watching immediate support near 22,800, with a lower band at 22,600–22,500 and another support zone at 22,550–22,750. On the upside, the levels mentioned are 23,000–23,200 and 23,200–23,300. The 20-day exponential moving average sits around 22,900. These are reference levels that analysts are tracking, not forecasts.

What is the FII DII data for 19 October 2026?

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers of ₹1,148.60 crore in the cash market, buying ₹11,240.60 crore and selling ₹12,389.30 crore. Domestic institutional investors were net buyers of ₹3,201.20 crore, buying ₹14,781.30 crore and selling ₹11,580.10 crore. For October so far, FIIs are net sellers of ₹49,917.60 crore and DIIs net buyers of ₹51,369.20 crore.

When is Nifty expiry this week?

The Nifty weekly contract for this week settled on Monday 19 October, because the usual Tuesday expiry day, 20 October, was a Dussehra holiday. The next Nifty expiry is Tuesday 27 October, which is also the monthly F&O expiry since it is the last Tuesday of the month. The next Sensex weekly expiry is Thursday 22 October.

Which stocks are in the F&O ban list today?

Three stocks are in the NSE F&O ban list on 21 October 2026: Kaynes Technology India (MWPL 153.53%), Ambuja Cements (108.14%) and Steel Authority of India or SAIL (104.43%). During a ban period traders can only square off existing positions, not open new ones.

Why is crude oil in focus for Indian markets today?

Brent December futures were around $110.20, up about 1.2%, near a five-month high, after reports of repeated tanker attacks near the Strait of Hormuz cut shipped volumes out of the Gulf. India imports the bulk of its crude, so higher prices tend to widen the import bill, add to inflation and put pressure on the rupee. Oil marketing companies, paints, tyres, aviation and chemicals are the sectors most often discussed in this context, while upstream producers are affected in the opposite direction.

Data sources: NSE and BSE exchange data, Kotak Neo pre-market and market news, Business Standard markets, NiftyTrader (GIFT Nifty and Nifty option chain), 5paisa (FII/DII cash data and F&O ban list), HDFC Sky market close report, Dhanarthi, Angel One (IPO details), Goodreturns (corporate actions), Oilprice.com and TradingKey. Figures are as reported in the 7:30–8:30 AM IST window on 21 October 2026 and are provisional; please verify against NSE and BSE before acting on anything. Hong Kong and Shanghai index levels could not be reliably sourced at the time of writing and have been left out.

This report is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Please consult a SEBI-registered investment advisor before making any trading or investment decisions.