Sensex plunges 813.35 points amid US-Iran conflict, crude oil breaching USD 100 a barrel

The domestic equity benchmark indices extended their losing streak on the third consecutive day on Wednesday as crude oil prices surged over USD 100 per barrel amid the escalating tensions between US and Iran Offloading in IT stocks also weighed on the investor sentimentThe 30share BSE Sensex plunged 81335 points or 108 per cent to settle at the days low of 7476423 The 50share NSE Nifty tanked 20360 points or 086 per cent to end at 2343150The gainers and the laggardsIndian benchmark indices witnessed strong selling pressure during Wednesdays session with Brent crude oil prices rising above the USD 100 per barrel mark amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty further weighing on investor sentiment The indices attempted a recovery from their intraday lows however the rebound failed to sustain triggering another wave of selling pressure and pushing the Nifty towards its days low by the close Pabitro Mukherjee Deputy Vice President Research Bajaj Broking saidAmong the 30 Sensex constituents only six ended higher Adani Ports Tata Steel Trent and NTPC were among the notable gainers while IT stocks witnessed erosions HCL Tech stock tanked 455 per cent along with Infosys that lost 443 per cent Tech Mahindra Tata Consultancy Services HDFC Bank and Hindustan Unilever were also among the major laggardsAccording to Shrikant Chouhan Head Equity Research Kotak Securities the IT index lost the most shedding 325 percent whereas despite weak market sentiment the Metal index gained 175 percentSectorwise the session remained largely weak with BSE Metal Utilities and Commodities emerging among the key gainers On the other hand BSE Focused IT Information Technology Bankex Consumer Durables and Auto were among the major lagging sectors The weakness in technology banking and consumerlinked segments indicates that selling pressure was broadbased despite relative strength in select commodityoriented sectors Sachin Gupta VP Technical Research Choice Equity Broking saidOn Tuesday Sensex tanked 55523 points or 073 per cent to settle at 7557758 while the Nifty declined 14405 points or 061 per cent to end at 2363510Global macroeconomic factors impacting domestic equitiesIndian equities are likely to remain under pressure amid weak global cues a sharp rise in crude prices and continued concerns over supply disruptions following the latest escalation in USIran hostilities around the Strait of Hormuz Brent crude crossed the USD 100 per barrel mark today its highest level since July as intensifying Middle East tensions raised concerns over global oil supplies Oil prices have surged nearly 43 per cent from their lateJune low of USD 7014 per barrel Siddhartha Khemka Head of Research Wealth Management Motilal Oswal Financial Services saidAccording to news agency PTI Brent crude the global oil benchmark jumped 267 per cent to USD 1005 per barrel while Foreign Institutional Investors FIIs offloaded equities worth Rs 12319 crore on TuesdayMarkets are increasingly pricing in a prolonged Middle East conflict with continued hostilities and retaliatory actions expected to keep crude oil prices elevated in the near term Persistent geopolitical uncertainty is making it difficult for major central banks to achieve a balance between growth and inflation while higher energy costs pose risks to both economic activity and price stability With bond yields and currencies remaining volatile investors are likely to adopt a cautious stance limiting risk appetite and keeping market sentiment subdued Vinod Nair Head of Research Geojit Investments saidIn Asian markets South Koreas Kospi and Shanghais SSE Composite index ended higher while Japans Nikkei 225 and Hong Kongs Hang Seng index settled lowerWith inputs from PTI