Stock Market Decline Amid Renewed Tension In Middle East, Sensex Falls 390 Points

Stock Market Today: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Monday as renewed hostilities between the US and Iran and rising oil prices unnerved investors. The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 372.10 points, or 0.48 per cent, to settle at 76,728.37. During the day, it tanked 478.72 points, or 0.62 per cent, to 76,621.75.

The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 109.75 points, or 0.46 per cent, to end at 23,946.25. From the Sensex pack, Kotak Mahindra Bank declined 3.24 per cent after the firm said its MD and CEO, Ashok Vaswani, will quit upon completion of his three-year tenure and will not seek re-appointment when his current term ends on December 31, 2026.

Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, InterGlobe Aviation, UltraTech Cement and Larsen & Toubro were also among the laggards. In contrast, Eternal, Trent, Bharat Electronics and NTPC were among the gainers.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 1.51 per cent to USD 73.09 per barrel.

"Geopolitical tensions escalated sharply over the weekend as the US and Iran exchanged attacks over the Strait of Hormuz before agreeing to halt hostilities and renew talks, keeping losses in check, but raising serious questions over the deal''s durability and heightening the risk of a breakdown, leaving headline risk and volatility deeply embedded in market reactions," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi settled lower, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended in positive territory.

Markets in Europe were trading lower in mid-session deals. US markets ended marginally lower on Friday. Stock markets were closed on Friday for Muharram.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 383.76 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. On Thursday, the Sensex settled 109.25 points, or 0.14 per cent, higher at 77,100.47. The Nifty rose by 34.35 points, or 0.14 per cent, to end at 24,056.

Rupee Falls

The rupee pared initial gains and settled lower by 9 paise at 94.54 (provisional) against the US dollar, as renewed geopolitical tensions hit investors' risk appetite.

Forex traders said the rupee opened on a positive note with crude oil prices remaining supportive and foreign inflows improving, but a renewed flare-up in geopolitical tensions after fresh military exchanges between the US and Iran dented investor sentiment.

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