Buy or sell: Gift Nifty signals gap-down start, Vaishali Parekh recommends three stocks to buy today — 23 July 2026

Buy or sell stocks, 23 July 2026: The key benchmark indices of the Indian stock market are poised for a weaker start, with investor sentiment remaining fragile as escalating tensions in the Middle East fuel a fresh surge in global oil prices and weigh on risk appetite. Early indications from Gift Nifty point to a modest gap-down opening, reflecting growing concerns over the conflict's potential impact on global energy supplies and inflation.

Markets were rattled after Yemen's Houthi rebels reportedly attacked two Saudi oil tankers, opening a new front in the regional conflict and raising fears of further disruptions to crude supplies. The latest escalation has pushed WTI crude toward $88 a barrel, while Brent has climbed above $95, intensifying concerns over inflation, central bank policy and the outlook for major oil-importing economies such as India.

The combination of elevated oil prices and persistent pressure on the Indian rupee is likely to keep investors cautious, with market participants expected to closely monitor geopolitical developments and energy markets for further direction.

Vaishali Parekh, Vice President — Technical Research at Prabhudas Lilladher, believes the Indian stock market may open gap-down today, as the Gift Nifty Live Chart is trading nearly 120 points below Wednesday's spot Nifty close.

Speaking on the outlook of the Nifty 50 index, Vaishali Parekh said, the key benchmark index indicated a bearish candle on the daily chart after a weak session, which closed below the 24,000 level on the back of weak cues mainly from the banking sector, which saw HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI and Axis Bank shedding their gains heavily to drag the index.

“The Nifty 50 index has once again failed to cross above the 24,350 zone, slipped heavily from the 24,200 zone with bias and sentiment precariously placed, having the important and crucial near-term support at the 23,800 level, which needs to be sustained to maintain the overall bias intact as of now,” said Parekh.

On the outlook of the Bank Nifty today, Vaishali Parekh of Prabhudas Lilladher said, the index witnessed heavy profit-booking with most of the major frontline banking stocks slipping heavily to drag the index and close below the important 200-period MA at the 57,400 zone, slightly weakening the bias and closed near the 57,100 level.

“The Bank Nifty index would have the near-term support zone of 56,500 level, which needs to be sustained, failing which the bias would turn weak, opening the gates for further downward slide, having the next major support positioned near the 53,500 zone,” said Parekh.

Regarding stocks to buy today, Vaishali Parekh recommended buying these three buy-or-sell stocks: Hindustan Zinc, Sanathan Textiles, and ONGC.

1] Hindustan Zinc: Buy at ₹533, Target ₹555, Stop Loss ₹525;

2] Sanathan Textiles: Buy at ₹490, Target ₹520, Stop Loss ₹480; and

Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.

Asit Manohar has nearly two decades of experience in the mainstream media. In this period, he has served esteemed media organisations like NDTV Profit, The Economic Times, and Zee Business. He has been working at LiveMint Digital since April 2021. During these two decades of journey in mainstream media, Asit has mainly covered external affairs, markets and personal finance. However, his earliest beats include railways, SME, MSME, and politics (Congress beat). Some of his features on political, economic, and foreign policy are documented in the parliamentary records. <br><br> While pursuing his MA (Mass Communication, Session 2004-06), Asit began his media career as a stringer at All India Radio in Varanasi. At AIR Varanasi, Asit worked with the Gyanvani, Yuvvani and Vividh Bharti teams. After working for nearly one year at AIR Varanas...