Global financial markets navigated a complex mix of artificial intelligence sector rotation, cooling energy prices, and high-stakes international diplomacy on Thursday, November 12, 2026, following a sharp technology-led rebound on Wall Street overnight. After enduring bouts of volatility earlier in the week, major US equity benchmarks staged a broad recovery during Wednesday’s regular session, propelled by a surge in cloud and AI infrastructure stocks that lifted the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite roughly 400 points, or 1.6 percent. Simultaneously, global commodity traders welcomed a retreat in international crude oil prices, with Brent crude slipping back below the $92 per barrel mark after briefly touching $95 in the previous session. On Dalal Street in Mumbai, domestic benchmark indices—the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50—opened on a cautiously positive note on weekly derivatives expiry day, underpinned by sustained buying from Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) and softer oil import costs, even as weakness in US index futures and mixed cues across Asian exchanges kept traders alert.

Wall Street Rebound and US Futures: Nasdaq Surges 1.6% Before Extended Dip

Trading on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq reflected renewed investor appetite for beaten-down growth equities during Wednesday’s cash session. Recovering steadily from last week’s post-midterm election pullback, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average added 250 points at the closing bell, while the broader S&P 500 advanced 1.3 percent and the Nasdaq Composite led the pack with a 1.6 percent gain. Market strategists noted that easing energy costs helped offset lingering anxieties over elevated US Treasury yields and persistent inflation readings.

However, momentum cooled noticeably once regular trading concluded, as after-hours corporate headlines weighed on index derivatives. In early Thursday electronic trade, Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.8 percent and S&P 500 futures declined 0.4 percent, while Dow Jones futures hovered nearly unchanged. Across the Asia-Pacific region, equity benchmarks delivered a divergent performance as investors digested overnight US tech swings alongside regional currency movements. In Tokyo, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 edged marginally higher while the broader Topix index gained 0.62 percent. Conversely, selling pressure weighed on Seoul and Sydney, with South Korea’s Kospi falling 0.35 percent, the tech-focused Kosdaq sliding 0.66 percent, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 retreating 0.31 percent.

AI Sector Churn: CoreWeave Soars 24% While Nvidia Faces Board Scrutiny

Beneath the headline index gains, the global artificial intelligence trade experienced dramatic internal divergence driven by contrasting corporate developments. Semiconductor bellwether Nvidia found itself at the center of intense market speculation following unverified media reports claiming that the company’s board of directors was weighing plans to remove longtime Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang amid personal and governance controversies. Although Nvidia shares managed to close roughly 3 percent higher during regular Wednesday hours alongside the broader tech rally, the stock tumbled nearly 8 percent in extended after-hours trading as institutional investors priced in potential leadership uncertainty.

Offsetting the slump in Nvidia, strong financial guidance from emerging "neocloud" and AI data center operators injected fresh optimism into the broader artificial intelligence ecosystem. Shares of AI cloud infrastructure specialist CoreWeave skyrocketed more than 24 percent on Wednesday after the company posted third-quarter revenue of $3.66 billion—well ahead of Wall Street estimates—and raised its full-year revenue forecast, easing fears of an imminent slowdown in enterprise AI spending. The upbeat report triggered a sympathetic rally across peer infrastructure and high-performance computing firms, propelling shares of Nebius, Applied Digital, and IREN higher by between 5 percent and 15 percent.

Crude Oil Volatility: Brent Slips Below $92 Amid US Inventory Surge and Iran Tensions

Energy markets remained a pivotal macro driver for both global bond yields and emerging market equities on Thursday. After climbing as high as $95 per barrel during the prior session on geopolitical risk premiums, international benchmark Brent crude pulled back below $92 per barrel in early trade, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude hovered in a subdued range near $86 to $87 per barrel. Market analysts attributed the downward reversal to fresh supply-side data from the United States that outweighed Middle Eastern friction.

According to weekly inventory estimates released by the American Petroleum Institute (API), US commercial crude oil stockpiles jumped by a substantial 9 million barrels last week, signaling softer near-term domestic refining demand and ample supply buffers. That inventory build helped counteract upward price pressure stemming from renewed diplomatic friction between Washington and Tehran, after Iranian officials reiterated that the country will not transfer its stockpile of enriched nuclear material outside its borders. For major net oil-importing economies such as India, Brent crude’s retreat below $92 offers immediate macroeconomic relief by easing imported inflation risks and supporting stability in the Indian rupee.

Domestic Market Outlook: Sensex and Nifty Edge Higher on Weekly Expiry

Taking cues from cooling crude prices and resilient domestic liquidity, Indian equity markets began Thursday’s trading session on a steady, constructive footing. In opening deals on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange, the Sensex started near 81,762 while the Nifty 50 opened around 25,213, extending a multi-session winning streak before encountering routine intraday consolidation on weekly options expiry day. Sectoral breadth remained selective, with financial, energy, and domestic consumption counters attracting steady bids while export-oriented information technology stocks tracked mixed global tech cues.

Institutional flow data continues to provide a strong cushion for Indian equities. Significant net buying by Foreign Institutional Investors in the preceding trading session reinforced market sentiment, complementing consistent inflows from domestic mutual funds and retail investors. Market participants in Mumbai and across major financial hubs noted that as long as Brent crude remains contained near current levels and foreign portfolio inflows persist, dips in benchmark indices are likely to attract buying interest despite intermittent global volatility.

Geopolitics and Macro Triggers: Ukraine Peace Talks, Earnings, and Fed Speakers

Looking ahead through the remainder of Thursday’s global session, investors are closely tracking high-level diplomatic engagements surrounding the Russia-Ukraine conflict. US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow early Thursday to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and brief the Kremlin on recent diplomatic discussions held in Abu Dhabi. Following their talks in Russia, the two American representatives are scheduled to travel to Dublin later in the day to debrief Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of an informal gathering of European Union leaders. Any tangible progress toward a negotiated ceasefire framework could further dampen energy risk premiums and bolster global risk appetite.

On the corporate and monetary policy calendar, traders are awaiting quarterly financial results from semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials and AI cloud firm Nebius Group later on Thursday for additional insight into global chip demand. Simultaneously, scheduled public remarks from three US Federal Reserve policymakers will be scrutinized closely for clues on the central bank’s interest rate trajectory heading into year-end.