Morning Brief · Saturday, 17 October 2026
Data as of 17 Oct 2026
Weekend edition · Saturday, 17 October 2026 · Friday's session wrap & conditions into Monday, 19 October
| Item | Level | Move | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brent crude (Dec) | $109.86/bbl | +3.72% | Friday settlement; up 4.91% in the week on Gulf supply fears |
| WTI crude (Nov) | $101.41/bbl | +3.51% | Above $100; up 10.41% in the week |
| Gold (spot) | $4,166.39/oz | -0.11% | Flat on the day; down 0.66% in the week |
| Silver (spot) | $56.99/oz | -0.73% | Down 6.27% in the week |
| Copper (COMEX) | $6.53/lb | +0.30% | Friday close; down 1.68% in the week |
| Aluminium | $3,008.50/t | +0.79% | Friday close; down 1.54% in the week |
| US 10-year Treasury | 5.09% | -1 bp | Down 15 basis points in the week from 5.24% |
| India 10-year G-sec | 7.38% | -0.7 bp | Steady despite costlier oil |
| USD/INR | 94.96 | Rupee +0.11% | Stronger than Thursday's 95.06 |
| India forex reserves (week to 9 Oct) | $726.0 bn | -$8.58 bn | Down about $59.7 bn from the 4 September record |
Friday's results season handed us a clear split. Banks led: Federal Bank's profit rose 45% to a record, Punjab National Bank's rose 12.8%, & Ujjivan Small Finance Bank's tripled as bad-loan provisions fell by more than half. Meanwhile companies selling goods & services showed growth without margin: LTIMindtree's sales rose 13.6% but profit stayed flat, Himadri's sales rose 58% while its operating margin slipped three points, & DLF's revenue fell 23% because of how property sales are booked.
Overnight, the picture outside India turned harder. Brent crude settled at $109.86 a barrel, up 3.72% on the day, on renewed fears for Gulf supplies. The Nasdaq fell 2.1% on doubts about how artificial intelligence spending is being financed. Late on Friday, President Trump waived the tariffs that a new US law would have imposed on the biggest buyers of Russian crude, a group that includes India. That removes a deadline that was due on 18 October.
At home, the Nifty 50 closed Friday at 23,146.15 (+0.65%), Nifty IT posted its best week since April 2008 (+11.72%), & the rupee strengthened to 94.96 per dollar. The rupee's gain is being bought with reserves: the RBI's reserves are down about $59.7 billion in five weeks, & oil at $110 keeps the pressure on.
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