Indian markets bleed as Gulf tensions, crude oil prices spook investors

Indian equity markets saw a sharp decline with Sensex falling over 1300 points and Nifty dropping below 23,900. The sell-off was triggered by renewed geopolitical tensions in the Gulf region and concerns over rising crude oil prices.

Indian equity markets witnessed sharp selling pressure on Monday as renewed tensions in the Gulf region and concerns over rising crude oil prices weighed heavily on investor sentiment. The Nifty 50 index closed at 23,815.85, down 360.30 points or 1.49 per cent, while the BSE Sensex settled at 76,015.28, declining 1,312.91 points or 1.70 per cent.

Market experts said investor sentiment weakened after fresh geopolitical concerns in West Asia and rising worries over the impact of elevated crude oil prices on India's economy.

Expert Analysis

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments said the benchmark indices slipped sharply following renewed Gulf tensions after former US President Donald Trump reportedly rejected Iran's peace proposal. "The benchmark index slipped below the 24,000 mark as renewed Gulf tensions, following Trump's rejection of Iran's peace proposal, weighed on investor sentiment," Nair said.

He added that the cautious mood in the market deepened after Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to citizens to conserve energy and avoid non-essential foreign travel.

According to Nair, investors are reassessing the possible economic impact of higher crude oil prices, weakness in the Indian rupee and pressure on the current account deficit.

"At present, India's strong fiscal position and healthy forex reserves are helping the government to absorb the impact of elevated crude prices. However, prolonged geopolitical tensions could increase macroeconomic stress," he said.

He further added that rising bond yields and continued foreign institutional investor (FII) outflows are likely to keep markets range-bound in the near term.

Sector-wise Performance

Sector-wise, selling pressure was visible across most indices on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). Nifty Consumer Durables emerged as the worst-performing sector, declining more than 3 per cent during the session. Nifty PSU Bank fell 2.52 per cent, while Nifty Media declined 2.49 per cent and Nifty Auto slipped 1.86 per cent. Nifty IT also closed lower by 0.22 per cent. Among major sectors, only FMCG and Pharma managed to end the session with gains.

Global Cues

Crude oil prices remained elevated amid the ongoing geopolitical tensions in West Asia. Brent crude prices were trading around USD 103 per barrel at the time of filing this report.

In Asian markets, most major indices closed in positive territory except Japan. Japan's Nikkei 225 index ended lower by 0.38 per cent at 62,479. Singapore's Straits Times index gained 0.42 per cent to close at 4,942, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index edged up 0.06 per cent to settle at 26,410. Taiwan's weighted index also rose 0.45 per cent to close at 41,790.

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