The Nifty oscillated in a 367.30-point range, moving between 24,000.20 and 24,367.30 before ending the week with gains. India VIX rose 7.35% to 13.15, indicating a modest pickup in implied volatility after remaining subdued for the past several weeks. The headline index concluded the week with a gain of 127.40 points (+0.53%).

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The broader technical structure remains positive despite the absence of strong directional momentum. More importantly, the Nifty has once again defended the 23,800–24,000 zone, reinforcing it as a crucial support area and the immediate base for the ongoing recovery. While the index has been stabilising, it has now opened up room for an extension of the rebound towards the 24,500 zone, where it is likely to encounter the 100-week moving average, making it an important hurdle on the upside. Unless the index slips decisively below the 23,800 level, the current recovery structure is likely to remain intact. A sustained move above 24,500 would be required to further improve the medium-term technical outlook and revive stronger upside momentum.

The markets are likely to begin the coming week on a stable note while maintaining a positive undertone. Immediate resistance is expected at 24,500, followed by 24,780. On the downside, 24,000 and 23,800 will act as important support levels, with the latter remaining the key line of defence for the bulls.

The weekly RSI stands at 51.49 and remains neutral, without showing any bullish or bearish divergence against price. The weekly MACD is above its signal line. The latest candle has formed a small-bodied bullish candle, reflecting continued accumulation after recent stabilisation rather than any decisive breakout.

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Pattern analysis shows that the index continues to recover after successfully holding the lower boundary of its broader trading structure. The repeated defence of the 23,800–24,000 support zone lends greater technical significance to this area and strengthens the probability of a continued pullback. However, the recovery is now approaching a technically important supply zone near 24,500, where the 100-week moving average is placed. This convergence of resistance is likely to make the 24,500 area a decisive technical hurdle.
For the week ahead, market participants should continue to maintain a balanced approach. The successful defence of the key support area has improved the short-term outlook, but the index is now approaching an important resistance cluster that may trigger intermittent profit-taking.Fresh aggressive buying should ideally be reserved for stocks exhibiting strong relative strength and improving technical setups rather than chasing index moves near resistance. As long as the Nifty remains above 24,000, the recovery bias is likely to persist. However, traders should stay selective and adopt a stock-specific approach while closely monitoring price behaviour around the 24,500 zone, which is likely to dictate the market’s next directional move.

The Relative Rotation Graph (RRG) shows that the Nifty Realty, Pharma, Media, and Midcap 100 indices are inside the leading quadrant. The Nifty Midcap and Media indices are showing a paring of relative momentum; these groups are collectively likely to outperform the broader Nifty 500 Index.

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The Nifty Energy, Infrastructure, and Metal indices are inside the weakening quadrant. They may show a slowdown in their overall relative performance.

The Nifty PSE Index has rolled inside the lagging quadrant. Along with the Nifty Auto Index, it is set to relatively underperform the broader Nifty 500 Index. The Nifty IT and PSU Bank indices are also inside the lagging quadrant, but they are seen improving their relative momentum against the broader markets.

The Nifty Services and Financial Services Sector indices have rolled into the improving quadrant. The Bank Nifty is also in the improving quadrant.

Note: RRG charts show the relative strength and momentum of a group of stocks. In the above chart, they show relative performance against the NIFTY500 Index (broader markets) and should not be used directly as buy or sell signals.

Argentina and Spain meet Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, for the 2026 World Cup final, and according to prediction markets and sportsbooks alike, Lionel Messi’s bid to lead Argentina to a second consecutive title comes in as the underdog, with most odds putting his team’s chances of winning at roughly 42%.

According to prediction market Kalshi, where betting volume on the final has surpassed $1.3 billion, Spain holds a 58.7% chance of winning the tournament, compared with 42.4% for Argentina. That gap has remained fairly consistent across multiple sportsbooks in the days leading up to kickoff. BetMGM opened Spain as a -175 favorite to lift the trophy, with Argentina priced as a +125 underdog. FanDuel Sportsbook lists Spain at -148 to win the Cup, with Argentina at +129. Across eight sportsbooks tracked ahead of the match, every operator lists Spain as the favorite in regulation time, though the size of that edge varies depending on the book, with the draw and Argentina’s price generally staying close together, a signal that oddsmakers expect a tight, low-scoring contest rather than a lopsided result.

Spain’s status as favorite stems largely from its defensive record through the tournament. La Roja have conceded just once in seven matches, a stretch that includes wins over Portugal in the round of 16, Belgium in the quarterfinals, and a 2-0 victory over France in Tuesday’s semifinal, secured through a Mikel Oyarzabal penalty. Spain also enters Sunday’s final riding a 37-match unbeaten streak dating back to last September, a run that spans both World Cup qualifying and the tournament itself, during which the team has posted 13 wins and four draws while allowing just four goals total.

Argentina, by contrast, has taken a far more dramatic path to the final. Lionel Scaloni’s side opened the tournament with three straight group-stage wins over Algeria, Austria and Jordan, before facing a series of tense knockout-round tests. Argentina trailed Egypt by two goals in the round of 16 before rallying to win 3-2, then defeated Switzerland 3-1 in extra time in the quarterfinals. In Wednesday’s semifinal against England, Argentina appeared headed for elimination until Enzo Fernández equalized in the 85th minute and Lautaro Martínez scored a stoppage-time winner off a Messi assist, completing a stunning 2-1 comeback. Despite conceding more goals than Spain throughout the tournament, Argentina has outscored opponents 19-7 overall and has found the net in every single match it has played, a streak analysts have pointed to as one of the team’s most reliable traits heading into the final.

At the center of the matchup is the individual duel between Messi, 39, and Spain’s 19-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal, a storyline that has followed the tournament from its earliest previews. The two are meeting on a World Cup pitch for the first time, adding another chapter to a connection that traces back to a widely circulated photograph, shared by Yamal’s father, showing a young Messi cradling a six-month-old Yamal years before either knew what the moment would come to represent.

Messi enters the final still tied with France’s Kylian Mbappé for the tournament’s scoring lead at eight goals, though Messi currently holds the Golden Boot on the tiebreaker of assists, having recorded one more than Mbappé. Should Argentina win the final and Messi finish with the most goals or the tiebreaker advantage intact, he would become just the fifth player in the tournament’s history to win both the World Cup and the Golden Boot in the same edition. FanDuel currently lists Messi’s odds to score anytime during the final at +150, the shortest anytime-goalscorer price on the board, reflecting bookmakers’ expectation that he remains Argentina’s most likely source of offense even at this stage of his career.

Betting analysts covering the match have offered a range of predictions. Squawka’s model, which the outlet said had produced a 71% hit rate across 99 settled predictions through the tournament’s semifinals, forecasts a narrow 2-1 Spain win, with both teams scoring and Messi finding the net at some point in the match. CBS Sports betting analyst Martin Green, working off a hot recent streak, said he is leaning toward the match staying under 2.5 total goals, citing Spain’s stingy defensive record while still cautioning against underestimating Argentina’s resilience. “You have to admire Argentina’s never-say-die attitude,” Green said. “They’re also always in with a chance of winning any game when they have Messi in attack.”

Not every prediction favors a low-scoring Spain win. Yahoo Sports’ betting preview pointed to history working in Argentina’s favor when it comes to how these matches tend to unfold, noting that four of the last five World Cup finals have required extra time to settle, and predicting Sunday’s match will likewise remain deadlocked through 90 minutes, forecasting a 1-1 draw in regulation. That analysis argued that while Spain has been the tournament’s best overall team, the gap may not be wide enough to make Spain a true 90-minute favorite against an Argentina side built specifically to thrive in high-pressure, close-margin moments.

Statistically, Argentina holds a narrow edge in several underlying performance metrics despite entering as the betting underdog, including a tournament-leading 91% passing accuracy, a 55% share of possession across its matches, and a 17% shot-conversion rate, marks that edge out Spain’s own numbers in those same categories, according to tournament data. A win for Argentina would make it the first nation to successfully defend a World Cup title since Brazil in 1962, while a Spain victory would deliver the country its second championship, following its lone previous title in 2010.

Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. Eastern time Sunday at MetLife Stadium, with the match broadcast on Fox and Telemundo in the United States. Weather conditions for the final are expected to be favorable, with forecasts calling for a high near 83 degrees, a mix of sun and clouds, light winds and only a modest chance of rain, setting the stage for what oddsmakers, analysts and fans alike expect to be one of the more tightly contested finals in recent World Cup history.

Kylian Mbappé has taken a commanding lead in the race for the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot, scoring twice in France’s 6-4 third-place playoff win over England on Friday to push his tournament tally to 10 goals, putting him two clear of Argentina’s Lionel Messi with only Sunday’s final remaining on the tournament calendar.

Mbappé’s brace against England, coming in the 48th and 66th minutes of a wild, back-and-forth match at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, extended his tournament-leading total and effectively completed his scoring campaign for the summer, since France’s elimination in Tuesday’s semifinal loss to Spain means Friday’s third-place playoff marked the French star’s final match of the tournament. Messi, by contrast, still has one match left to add to his total when Argentina faces Spain in Sunday’s championship final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Heading into that final, Messi sits on eight goals, tied for second on the tournament’s scoring list alongside no other player at that exact total, with England’s Jude Bellingham sitting third after his own dramatic stoppage-time goal against France pushed his tally to seven. To catch Mbappé and claim the Golden Boot outright, Messi would need to score at least two goals in Sunday’s final to draw level with Mbappé’s total of 10, and a third goal would be required to move ahead of the French forward outright. Should the two finish tied on goals, FIFA’s official tiebreaker rules would then come into play, first counting total assists across the tournament, and if still tied, awarding the honor to whichever player logged fewer total minutes on the field.

Messi currently holds an edge in that assist tiebreaker regardless of Sunday’s outcome, having recorded four assists so far in the tournament compared with three for Mbappé. That means if Messi manages to score exactly two goals in the final to draw level with Mbappé at 10, Messi would likely still claim the Golden Boot on the strength of his superior assist total, barring a change in either player’s underlying statistics before FIFA finalizes the award. If Messi finishes with fewer than 10 goals, however, Mbappé’s two-goal cushion built up in Friday’s third-place match would be enough to secure the award outright regardless of the assist tiebreaker, since Golden Boot rules prioritize total goals scored above all secondary criteria.

Mbappé’s tournament has featured a mix of clinical finishing and high-profile moments throughout France’s run to the semifinals. He opened his account with two goals against Sweden in the round of 32, converted a penalty in a 1-0 win over Paraguay in the round of 16, and scored again in France’s quarterfinal win over Morocco before Tuesday’s semifinal loss to Spain, in which he was held scoreless as Spain’s defense limited France to just two shots on target across the match. Friday’s third-place playoff against England proved to be Mbappé’s most productive single match of the tournament, with his two goals sandwiched around goals from teammates Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé, as France briefly erased a 4-2 deficit before England’s Bukayo Saka completed a hat-trick and Bellingham delivered the winning goal with the last kick of the match.

Messi’s path to eight goals has been built around a mix of early tournament dominance and clutch, late-match contributions during Argentina’s more difficult knockout-round tests. He scored a hat-trick against Algeria in the group stage, added a brace against Austria that pushed his career World Cup goal total past Germany’s Miroslav Klose to make him the tournament’s all-time leading scorer, and continued contributing throughout the knockout rounds, including a crucial equalizer against Egypt in the round of 16 as Argentina rallied from a two-goal deficit to win 3-2. Notably, Messi did not add to his goal total in Wednesday’s semifinal against England, instead recording two assists as he set up both of Argentina’s late goals in a dramatic 2-1 comeback win, a performance that boosted his assist total and, by extension, his current tiebreaker advantage over Mbappé.

A Golden Boot win Sunday would mark a first for Messi’s decorated career, adding a new honor to a trophy case that already includes eight Ballon d’Or awards and the 2022 World Cup title. Mbappé, by contrast, has already claimed the Golden Boot once before, winning the award at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after scoring a hat-trick in that tournament’s final against Argentina, even though France ultimately lost that match to Messi’s Argentina side on penalties.

Prediction markets tracking the tournament’s individual awards have generally favored Mbappé to claim this year’s Golden Boot given his current two-goal cushion and the fact that his tournament has already concluded, removing any uncertainty about further scoring opportunities. Messi’s path to the award now depends entirely on his performance in a single match against a Spanish defense that has conceded just once across seven games this tournament, the stingiest defensive record of any team remaining in the competition.

Beyond the two frontrunners, no other player realistically remains in contention for the Golden Boot heading into the final. Norway’s Erling Haaland finished his tournament with seven goals following his team’s earlier elimination, while Bellingham’s seven goals from Friday’s third-place match leave him mathematically tied with Haaland but with no further matches remaining to add to his total. France’s Ousmane Dembélé and Spain’s Mikel Oyarzabal round out the next tier of contenders with five goals apiece, both already finished for the tournament as well.

With Mbappé’s tournament now complete and his total locked in at 10 goals, Sunday’s final effectively serves as a one-man race for Messi, who will need a big performance against Spain not only to help Argentina defend its title but also to have any realistic chance of adding the Golden Boot to what is widely expected to be his final World Cup appearance.

Kuwait International Airport is open and operating today, with Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways running flights out of Terminals 4 and 5, though Terminal 1 remains closed indefinitely following structural damage sustained during a drone strike earlier this year.

The airport’s current status reflects the tail end of a turbulent recovery that began on February 28, when all flights to and from Kuwait International Airport were suspended following the closure of Kuwaiti airspace amid the broader outbreak of conflict between the United States and Iran. That closure lasted for months as the region navigated repeated waves of military escalation, before airlines began a phased return to service in the spring.

Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways resumed operations from Terminals 4 and 5 on April 26, restoring a baseline level of connectivity even as the airport’s broader infrastructure remained under repair. Terminal 1 briefly reopened on June 1, allowing some non-Kuwaiti carriers to resume flying through the facility for the first time since the closure began. That reopening, however, proved short-lived. Terminal 1 suffered more serious structural damage, including a partial roof collapse, during a subsequent strike on June 3, rendering the facility unsafe for passenger operations and forcing officials to close it once again. That second closure has remained in effect since, and no confirmed reopening date has been announced.

The damage to Terminal 1 traces back to a broader campaign of drone and missile strikes that targeted Kuwait International Airport between late February and June, part of Iran’s wider pattern of strikes against Persian Gulf states during the conflict. Those attacks caused damage across multiple parts of the airport’s infrastructure, including its radar installation, according to reporting on the airport’s recovery. Terminal 3 at the airport remains permanently closed, unrelated to the recent conflict, while Terminal 2, a separate facility under construction, was also targeted during the strikes, though officials have said the damage did not affect that project’s planned completion timeline.

Kuwait’s civil aviation authorities have emphasized a cautious, staged approach to restoring full airport operations rather than rushing to reopen all facilities simultaneously. Sheikh Hamoud Mubarak Al Sabah, chairman of Kuwait’s General Civil Aviation Authority, said earlier this year that the phased reopening process was being coordinated closely with domestic and international authorities to ensure operations resumed in line with the highest safety and security standards.

With Terminal 1 out of service, Terminals 4 and 5 have absorbed additional passenger traffic that would normally flow through the closed facility. Officials have described the airport’s overall trajectory as positive despite the setback, with foreign carriers gradually resuming Kuwait service even as Terminal 1’s closure continues limiting the airport’s total capacity. Renewed regional tension has continued to complicate that recovery at points. Kuwait reported fresh air-defense activity amid renewed missile and drone threats on July 9, a reminder that the broader security situation in the Gulf, while significantly calmer than earlier in the year, has not been entirely free of additional scares even as the airport has worked to stabilize operations.

Looking further ahead, Kuwait continues advancing a major long-term expansion of its aviation infrastructure separate from the immediate Terminal 1 repair effort. A new Terminal 2, designed by the architecture firm Foster + Partners, remains under construction and is targeted for completion in the final quarter of 2026. The project, structured around a triangular building design, is expected to add dozens of additional gates, thousands of new parking spaces and an air-side hotel once finished, significantly expanding the airport’s overall passenger handling capacity to more than 25 million travelers annually. That expansion has faced its own delays over the years, initially tied to disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, to an Iranian drone strike that caused minor damage to the construction site without affecting the project’s planned completion timeline.

Travelers with flights booked through Kuwait International Airport are strongly advised to confirm their specific flight details directly with their airline before heading to the airport, given how frequently conditions have shifted throughout 2026. Passengers flying with Kuwait Airways should expect to depart from Terminal 4, while those flying with Jazeera Airways will use Terminal 5. Anyone whose itinerary was originally booked through Terminal 1 should check with their airline regarding rebooking, alternate terminal arrangements, or refund options, since that facility remains offline with no confirmed date for restoring passenger operations.

Kuwait’s aviation authorities have continued monitoring the security situation closely, particularly given the renewed air-defense alerts reported earlier this month. While the airspace closure that grounded flights for much of the spring has long since been lifted, and the region has moved from an initial ceasefire toward what officials describe as a broader, more durable peace following the conflict, the continued closure of Terminal 1 stands as the most visible remaining sign of the disruption Kuwait’s aviation sector experienced earlier this year.

For now, the practical answer for travelers is straightforward: Kuwait International Airport is open today, and flights are operating through Terminals 4 and 5 without disruption tied to the earlier conflict. But the airport has not yet returned to its full pre-conflict capacity, and the continued uncertainty surrounding Terminal 1’s reopening, combined with the possibility of renewed regional tension affecting operations on short notice, means travelers should treat any planned trip through Kuwait with the same degree of caution and flexibility that has characterized air travel across much of the Gulf region throughout 2026.

This article was written by

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Harry Kane is not retiring from the England national team, at least not yet. The Three Lions captain pushed back firmly on speculation about his international future after England’s heartbreaking 2-1 semifinal loss to Argentina at the 2026 World Cup, telling reporters it was too early to make any decision about whether he had played his final match on the sport’s biggest stage.

England had held a 1-0 lead through the 84th minute of Wednesday’s semifinal in Atlanta, thanks to an Anthony Gordon goal, before Argentina scored twice in the closing minutes to complete a stunning comeback. Enzo Fernández equalized in the 85th minute, and Lautaro Martínez headed home the winner two minutes into stoppage time, with Lionel Messi assisting on both goals. The result marked England’s second semifinal exit at the same stage in the last three World Cups and ended the team’s hopes of reaching its first final since winning the tournament in 1966.

Speaking to reporters in the mixed zone following the match, Kane, 32, was asked directly whether the loss might have marked his final World Cup appearance for England. “It’s too early to talk about that,” Kane said. “Me as a person, it’s always about taking it year by year and how I feel. The national team is my pride and joy. It’s what I love to do most, more than anything.” Kane went on to acknowledge the scale of the time commitment involved in playing at another World Cup, while pointing to Messi’s continued excellence at an advanced age as a source of inspiration. “Obviously, four years is a long way away. I’m 33 in the summer. But, as you see on the other end with Leo (Messi) there, he’s still performing at the highest level,” Kane said. “I never want to put a limit on these things. I’ll address every situation as they come, but for now, it’s about processing another tough loss with this team.”

Kane’s comments echoed similar sentiments he expressed in interviews before this year’s tournament, when he was already fielding questions about whether the 2026 World Cup might represent his final appearance on that stage given his age. Speaking to the Press Association last year ahead of England’s Nations League matches, Kane dismissed the idea that he was nearing the end of his international career, pointing to his club form with Bayern Munich as evidence he remains at the peak of his abilities. “I think there’s a perception when you get to your thirties that you’re coming to an end but for me I’m performing at the highest level I’ve ever performed and feel as good as I’ve ever felt,” Kane said at the time. “I don’t like to look too far ahead and in my career I never have, the World Cup is going to be exciting. In America it will be an incredible occasion and ultimately it’s about trying to win that, looking at where you are, where to improve and it will be no different in a couple of years.”

The retirement speculation surrounding Kane carries added weight given the timeline involved. Kane turns 33 on July 28 and would be 36 or 37 by the time the next World Cup arrives in 2030, an age at which questions about a striker’s continued international involvement become increasingly common. Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, who played at this year’s tournament at age 41, and Messi’s own continued dominance at 39, have both been cited by observers, and by Kane himself, as evidence that elite players can continue performing well into their late 30s and beyond, complicating any assumption that Kane’s international career is nearing its natural end.

Kane’s performance throughout this year’s tournament offered little indication of a player in decline. He scored six goals during England’s run to the semifinals, matching his tally from the 2018 World Cup and becoming his country’s all-time leading World Cup goalscorer in the process, having already set the outright England appearance record among outfield players earlier in the tournament. His semifinal appearance against Argentina marked his 121st cap for England. Along with teammate Jude Bellingham, Kane was widely credited with carrying much of England’s attacking output throughout the tournament, and he had entered the World Cup in what many pundits described as career-best form for Bayern Munich, having scored 20 times in 21 appearances for club and country in the lead-up to the tournament.

Beyond the immediate question of his World Cup future, Kane also addressed the emotional toll of Wednesday’s loss, describing a locker room in shock after coming so close to a first World Cup final appearance in six decades. “There’s not much to say for now,” Kane said. “Everyone has to process what’s just happened. Everyone’s gutted. I’m gutted for all the boys, all the staff, everyone behind the scenes, because we know how much everyone puts into being a successful national team.” He added that the manner of the defeat, with victory slipping away in the match’s final minutes, made the loss especially difficult to absorb. “And when you’re so close, when you’re 10-plus minutes away, and it slips out of your hands like that, obviously the lads are devastated. Now we just have to take it on the chin. There’s nothing we can do.”

England went on to play France in Friday’s third-place playoff in Miami, closing out the tournament with a 6-4 win built around a Bukayo Saka hat-trick and a dramatic last-kick goal from Bellingham. Kane’s involvement in that fixture, and his broader role in England’s plans heading toward the next major tournament cycle, remain open questions the team and its new manager, Thomas Tuchel, are expected to address in the months ahead. For now, based on Kane’s own comments in the immediate aftermath of England’s exit, there is no indication that his time as England’s captain and primary goal-scoring threat is coming to a close, even as the four-year gap before the next World Cup leaves plenty of uncertainty about whether he will ultimately make it back to the tournament stage in 2030.

Other options for Burnham include scrapping the Energy Profits Levy (EPL), or windfall tax. This was introduced when prices spiked at the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

It has a headline rate of 78%, which is taken whether oil and gas prices are high or low.

The industry says it makes the North Sea one of the least favourable in the world for investors and there is strong evidence that investment has certainly dried up in those years.

It’s due to be replaced in 2030 by another windfall tax, which operators like more because it’s only triggered when prices are high and falls back when they are low.

While politicians have been arguing furiously over Jackdaw, Rosebank, and new exploration licences, it’s the EPL which the industry would most like the new prime minister to focus on.

It’s also the one which is likely to face the least opposition from environmentalists.

It does fit in with one of Andy Burnham’s missions of reindustrialisation by encouraging the kind of investment that brings and secures jobs.

But it’s the least politically sexy option to take.

So what he does there may help define whether the new PM is about grabbing headlines or making genuine moves to stimulate the economy.