Indian Markets Plunge Over 2% Amid US-Iran Tensions
The Indian markets took another big hit on Monday, with benchmark indices falling over 2%, as the crisis in the West Asia deepened. However, by the end of the day, there were hopes after US President Donald Trumpβs announced a five-day pause in the war against Iran. Brent crude prices were quick to react and plunged 14.4% to $96 per barrel before recovering to trade near $103 per barrel while the Gift Nifty futures jumped 783 points, or 3.49%, higher at 23,248. In a social media post, Trump said the US and Iran had engaged in βvery good and productiveβ discussions aimed at a complete resolution of hostilities in the Middle East. βI have instructed the Department of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a five-day period,β he said. However, Iran rejected Trumpβs claims of βproductive talks,β calling them part of efforts to cool energy prices. Earlier in the day, the Sensex fell 1,836.57 points, or 2.46%, to close below the 73,000 mark at 72,696.39. The Nifty plunged 601.85 points, or 2.60%, to end at 22,512.65. Broader indices underperformed the benchmarks, with the BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap indices declining 3.86% and 4.08%, respectively. The India VIX Index surged 17.17% to 26.73 β its highest closing level since June 4, 2024 β indicating heightened market volatility. βIndian equities remained under pressure, witnessing a sharp sell-off as escalating tensions between the US and Iran weighed on global sentiment,β said Siddhartha Khemka, head of research, wealth management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Concerns over potential disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and threats to energy infrastructure have heightened fears of supply shocks, keeping investors on edge, he added. Since the conflict began on February 28, both the Sensex and Nifty have declined 10.57% and 10.59%, respectively. As a result, investors have lost Rs 48.3 lakh crore in wealth over 15 sessions. From their January peak, total investor wealth erosion has reached a staggering Rs 66 lakh crore. Market breadth remained sharply negative, with 3,798 losers against 635 gainers on the BSE. All sectoral indices on both the BSE and NSE ended in the red. Consumer durables, metals, realty, PSU banks, and energy stocks were the worst hit, falling by up to 5.17%. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth $1.1 billion (Rs 10,414.23 crore), while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 12,033.97 crore, as per provisional exchange data. So far in March, FPI net outflows have hit an all-time high (in rupee terms) of Rs 98,676.27 crore ($10.6 billion), while DII net inflows stood at Rs 1.13 lakh crore, surpassing the previous record of Rs 1.07 lakh crore set in October 2024. Among Sensex stocks, HDFC Bank contributed 472.53 points, or 26%, to the indexβs total decline of 1,836 points, while ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel , SBI, and L&T together accounted for another 445 points, or 24%. Titan Company , Trent, UltraTech Cement , BEL, and IndiGo were the top Sensex laggards, declining by up to 6.24%, while HCL Tech, Power Grid, Infosys, and Tech Mahindra bucked the trend, gaining up to 1.83%. Across Asia, South Korea led the losses with a 6.5% decline in its benchmark index, followed by China, Hong Kong, Japan, and India. Indonesia was the only gainer, rising 1.20%.
&w=3840&q=75)
