Sensex, Nifty Open Over 1% Lower as Iran War Fears Grip Global Markets

Mumbai, May 18: Domestic equity markets opened sharply lower on Monday morning, with both benchmark indices shedding over one per cent as investors turned risk-averse amid intensifying geopolitical anxieties stemming from the US-Iran conflict, surging crude oil prices, and a broadly weak global cue.

The BSE Sensex was trading at 74,437.53, down 800.46 points or 1.06%, while the NSE Nifty 50 slipped 240.45 points or 1.02% to 23,403.05 as of 9:23 am, with selling pressure broad-based across sectors.

Middle East Conflict

The Iran war continued to cast a heavy pall over financial markets worldwide. US President Donald Trump, after convening an emergency meeting of his national security team attended by Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and special envoy Steve Witkoff issued a stark warning to Tehran on Sunday, posting that Iran “better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them.” Separately, a drone attack on a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates over the weekend sharpened fears of a broader escalation in the region, pushing Brent crude to a two-week high and triggering fresh risk-off selling across global equity markets, with the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz keeping oil supply disruption concerns front and centre for investors.

Gainers & Losers

On the Nifty 50, only a handful of stocks managed to buck the selling tide in early trade. Infosys (INFY) was the top gainer, rising 1.33% to Rs 1,133.90, followed by Tech Mahindra (TECHM) up 0.79% at Rs 1,381.30, Wipro advancing 0.77% to Rs 191.46, and TCS adding 0.64% to trade at Rs 2,278.60; Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (TMPV) edged fractionally higher by 0.13% to Rs 357.

On the losing side, Power Grid Corporation was the steepest decliner, tumbling 3.69% to Rs 294.55, followed by Tata Steel falling 2.97% to Rs 210.41, Maruti Suzuki slipping 2.18% to Rs 12,933, Shriram Finance declining 2.02% to Rs 919, and Bajaj Finance shedding 1.95% to Rs 892.70.

Broader and Sectoral Markets

The broader market mirrored the weakness in the benchmarks, with all major indices in the red. Among broader market indices, Nifty Microcap 250 was the steepest loser, falling 1.82%, followed by Nifty Smallcap 500 down 1.51% and Nifty Smallcap 250 declining 1.42%.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Realty was the worst performer, plunging 2.14%, followed by Nifty Consumer Durables down 2.15% and Nifty Auto declining 1.64%, as rate-sensitive and discretionary sectors bore the brunt of risk aversion. On the green side, Nifty IT was the sole sectoral gainer, rising 0.40%, while Nifty Midsmall Healthcare edged up a marginal 0.04% with Nifty Pharma also holding up relatively well, down just 0.18%, as defensive bets attracted some buying interest.

Asian & US Markets

Asian markets were uniformly lower on Monday morning, with Indonesia’s JSX Composite leading declines at -1.98%, followed by Australia’s S&P ASX All Ordinaries down 1.47% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shedding 1.38%. Wall Street ended Friday’s session sharply in the red across the board the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.07% to 49,526.17, the S&P 500 lost 1.24% to close at 7,408.50, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.54% to settle at 26,225.15.

Oil Prices

Oil prices extended their rally sharply on Monday, with Brent crude climbing $2.03, or 1.86%, to $111.29 a barrel  briefly touching $112, its highest level since May 5  while US West Texas Intermediate rose $2.31, or 2.19%, to $107.73, after hitting an intraday peak of $108.70. Both contracts had already gained more than 7% last week as the Trump-Xi talks in Beijing ended without any indication that China would help broker a resolution to the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

Friday Closing

Indian markets closed in the red on Friday, snapping two consecutive sessions of gains as metal, oil-linked, PSU bank and realty stocks dragged the indices lower, while a fresh record low in the rupee beyond 96 to the dollar added a further layer of caution. The BSE Sensex fell 160.73 points, or 0.21%, to settle at 75,237.99, while the NSE Nifty 50 declined 46.10 points, or 0.19%, to close at 23,643.50. Broader market sentiment was decidedly weak, with 2,381 stocks declining against just 1,631 advances. India VIX, the market’s fear gauge, rose nearly 1% on Friday and climbed a further 5.05% on Monday morning to 19.74, signalling that volatility is likely to remain elevated in the near term.

Source:

• https://www.nseindia.com/market-data/top-gainers-losers
• https://www.nseindia.com/market-data/live-market-indices
• bseindia.com