Stock Market Today: Bears rule D-Street! Sensex down 580 points, Nifty below 23,500

Stock Market Today: Indian benchmark indices opened sharply lower on Friday, March 13, amid negative global cues, driven by worries over a prolonged conflict between the US and Iran.

The BSE Sensex fell 588.96 points, or 0.77 per cent, to 75,445.46 at the opening bell. The index opened at 75,444.22 compared with its previous close of 76,034.42.

The Nifty 50 also started the session on a weak note. The index declined 188 points, or 0.80 per cent, to 23,451.15. It opened at 23,462.50 against its previous close of 23,639.15.

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Middle East tensions rattle global markets

Investor sentiment turned cautious after Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said the Strait of Hormuz must remain shut to put extra pressure on enemy forces in his first public statement.

The development raised fears of a prolonged geopolitical conflict and potential disruptions in global oil supplies.

Asian markets trade mostly lower

Most markets in the Asia-Pacific region were trading with losses as the possibility of prolonged tensions in the Middle East sparked concerns about a weaker global economic outlook.

Among major Asian indices, Nikkei 225 declined 1.17 per cent, Hang Seng Index fell 0.57 per cent, Taiwan’s Taiwan Weighted Index slipped 0.39 per cent, and South Korea’s KOSPI dropped 1.57 per cent.

However, Singapore’s Straits Times Index traded marginally higher with a gain of 0.11 per cent.

Nifty sectoral indices show broad weakness

Sectoral indices on the National Stock Exchange of India indicated broad-based selling pressure in early trade.

Nifty Auto declined by more than 1 per cent. Nifty FMCG slipped 0.29 per cent, Nifty IT fell 0.67 per cent, and Nifty Metal dropped 0.53 per cent. Nifty Private Bank also declined 0.96 per cent.

Among Nifty50 stocks, UltraTech Cement, Larsen & Toubro, InterGlobe Aviation, and HDFC Bank were the top losers in early trade.

Crude oil jumps above $100

Meanwhile, Brent crude oil prices crossed USD 100 per barrel as geopolitical tensions and supply concerns pushed investors toward safer assets.

The May futures contract was trading 0.08 per cent higher at $100.54 per barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange after earlier rising as much as 0.51 per cent to $101.78.

US markets close sharply lower

Global markets reflected similar risk-off sentiment overnight.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.56 per cent to close at 46,677. The S&P 500 fell 1.5 per cent to 6,672, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.72 per cent to 22,311.

Institutional flows and global indicators

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued their selling streak in Indian markets. FIIs sold Rs 7,050 crore worth of equities in the cash segment on Thursday, marking the tenth consecutive session of net selling. Across cash, index futures and stock futures segments, their total net selling stood at around Rs 10,321 crore.

Domestic institutional investors (DIIs), however, remained net buyers for the twelfth straight session with purchases worth around Rs 7,450 crore.

Other global indicators also reflected rising risk aversion. The US Dollar Index climbed close to the 100 mark, touching a three-and-a-half-month high. US bond yields strengthened for the fourth straight day, with the 10-year yield hovering around 4.26 per cent.

The Indian rupee weakened by 15 paise to close at 92.19 against the US dollar and had earlier touched a record low of 92.36 during the session.

Crude oil prices have surged nearly 9 per cent and closed above the $100 mark for the first time since August 2022, while gold prices also saw sharp volatility amid the escalating geopolitical tensions.