Gift Nifty Today: Indian Markets to Remain Closed for Holi; Gifty Nifty in Red

The benchmark Indian equity indices, Sensex and Nifty 50, are set to remain closed on Tuesday, March 03, 2026, on account of the Holi festival. However, Gift Nifty is signalling intense selling pressure, tracking an escalation in the Middle East conflict and a slump in global equities. 

Investor sentiment has been severely rattled following joint US-Israeli strikes against Iran over the weekend, which has fanned fears of an oil price shock and renewed inflationary pressures globally. 

On Monday, March 02, 2026, markets plunged with the Sensex crashing 1,048.34 points (-1.29%) to close at 80,238.85 and the Nifty 50 tumbling 312.95 points (-1.24%) to settle at 24,865.70, driven by escalating Middle East tensions and the subsequent sell-off in global markets. 

Indian equity markets (BSE, NSE) are closed today, March 03, 2026, on account of the Holi festival. 

Gift Nifty Plunges, Signals Deep Cuts Ahead 

Gift Nifty was trading near the 24,734 mark as of Tuesday morning, at a staggering discount of about 258 points to the previous close of Nifty futures. This indicates that Indian markets are poised for a brutal gap-down opening once trading resumes on Wednesday.  

Gift Nifty Snapshot (as of Mar 03, 2026, 07:45 AM IST) 

Asian Markets Extend Losses on Middle East Crisis 

Stocks across Asia resumed their selloff and the dollar strengthened in early Asian trading on Tuesday as investors considered the implications of US and Israeli strikes on Iran.  

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1% to extend losses for a second day. This was led by a 2.5% tumble in Korean shares, while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 slumped 0.8%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng futures also signalled a weaker open. The spike in geopolitical risk has eclipsed any positive cues from Wall Street's late recovery. 

Wall Street Stages Recovery, Ends Mixed 

US markets staged a dramatic recovery from sharp early losses on Monday, eventually ending the session narrowly mixed. After tumbling by as much as 1.6%, the Nasdaq rose 80.65 points or 0.4% to 22,748.86. The S&P 500 also inched up 2.74 points to 6,881.62, while the narrower Dow dipped 73.14 points or 0.2% to 48,904.78. 

The turnaround came as traders used the initial sell-off as an opportunity to pick up stocks at reduced levels. However, the underlying anxiety remained high, reflected in the spike in oil prices and a pullback in treasury bonds, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note surging 8.6 basis points to 4.048%. 

Sectorally, airline stocks plummeted amid concerns about travel disruptions, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index plunging by 4.1%. Conversely, oil producer stocks surged alongside crude prices. 

Also Read: GIFT Nifty Today: Markets Set to Plunge as Iran War Fears Resulted Sharp Rise in Crude Price! 

Conclusion 

With Indian markets closed for Holi, the nearly 258-point plunge in Gift Nifty signals deep trouble ahead. The escalating Iran conflict has spiked oil prices and reignited inflation fears, hammering global equities. Once trading resumes, domestic indices are poised to gap down sharply, erasing recent gains amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty 

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