Stock market update: Sensex, Nifty fall sharply as US-Iran tensions, crude above USD 100 weigh on markets

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled in early trade on Friday after a twoday rally tracking weak trends in global markets as the ongoing USIran conflict continues to weigh on investor sentimentCrude oil prices remaining above the USD 100 per barrel mark and continued foreign fund outflows have also made investors riskaverseThe 30share BSE Sensex tanked 92692 points to 7434653 in early trade while the 50share NSE Nifty dropped 28095 points to 2302550Among the 30 Sensex firms Bajaj Finance Larsen amp Toubro Reliance Industries Eternal InterGlobe Aviation and Bajaj Finserv were among the major laggards On the other hand Tata Consultancy Services HCL Tech Tech Mahindra and Trent were among the gainersIn Asian markets South Korearsquos Kospi and Japanrsquos Nikkei 225 index traded lower while Shanghairsquos SSE Composite index and Hong Kongrsquos Hang Seng index were in positive territoryThe US markets ended sharply lower on ThursdayldquoGlobal sentiment has shifted firmly into riskoff territory US markets came under sharp selling pressure with the Nasdaq Composite falling 24 per cent and entering correction territory now trading over 10 per cent below its recent peak The Dow Jones fell by over 400 points while the SampP 500 dropped 17 per cent marking their steepest singleday declines since the escalation of the West Asia conflictThis indicates that investor concerns are now deepening beyond shortterm volatility and beginning to reflect broader macro risksrdquo said Hariprasad K Research Analyst and Founder of Livelong WealthHe added that the primary trigger for this shift remains the lack of meaningful progress in resolving the ongoing USIran conflictldquoCrude oil prices have once again moved above the USD 100 per barrel mark reinforcing inflationary concerns globally For India this is particularly significant given its heavy reliance on crude importsrdquo he saidBrent crude the global oil benchmark traded 117 per cent lower at USD 1068 per barrelldquoThe USIran conflict continues to be a key overhang While there are intermittent signs of deescalation the risk of renewed escalation persists keeping markets highly sensitive to geopolitical developmentsrdquo said Ponmudi R CEO of Enrich Money an online trading and wealth tech firmHe added that Brent crude prices remain elevated and volatile hovering in the USD 100ndash107 range raising concerns around inflation input costs and broader macroeconomic pressuresPonmudi further said the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the deepening conflict in the Middle East has renewed a riskoff tone across global markets with US equities closing sharply lower overnightStock markets were closed on Thursday on account of Ram NavamiForeign Institutional Investors FIIs offloaded equities worth Rs 180537 crore on Wednesday according to exchange data Domestic Institutional Investors DIIs however bought stocks worth Rs 542978 croreOn Wednesday the Sensex had jumped 1205 points or 163 per cent to settle at 7527345 while the Nifty surged 39405 points or 172 per cent to end at 2330645This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever