Sensex, Nifty Recover from Morning Lows at Midday; Iran War Jitters Keep Gains Capped

Mumbai, May 18: Indian equity benchmarks clawed back a significant portion of their sharp morning losses by midday on Monday, though both indices remained in the red as geopolitical anxiety stemming from the Iran war continued to weigh on investor sentiment.

The BSE Sensex was trading at 74,901.84, down 336.15 points or 0.45%, while the NSE Nifty 50 was at 23,531.70, lower by 111.80 points or 0.47%, as of 12:15 pm — a notable recovery from the gap-down opening where the Sensex had shed over 800 points and the Nifty had slipped past the 23,400 mark in early trade.

On the gainers’ side, Tech Mahindra was the standout performer on the Nifty 50, surging to Rs 1,421.70 against its previous close of Rs 1,370.50, a gain of 3.74%. Bharti Airtel rose to Rs 1,942.30 from its prior close of Rs 1,905.40, up 1.94%, while Infosys advanced to Rs 1,136.80 against a previous close of Rs 1,119. HCL Technologies and Wipro also held gains, trading at Rs 1,142.80 versus Rs 1,132.60, and Rs 191.71 against Rs 190 respectively.

On the losing side, Power Grid Corporation remained the steepest decliner, sliding to Rs 291.95 from its previous close of Rs 305.85, a fall of 4.54%. Tata Steel dropped to Rs 208.55 from Rs 216.84, down 3.82%, while State Bank of India fell to Rs 937.10 against Rs 963.20, a decline of 2.71%. Eternal slipped to Rs 235.02 from Rs 241.18, shedding 2.55%, and Trent declined to Rs 4,002.40 against a previous session close of Rs 4,101.30, down 2.41%.

Among broader market indices, the Nifty Microcap 250 was the biggest laggard, falling 2.32%, followed by Nifty Smallcap 500 down 2.10% and Nifty Smallcap 250 declining 2.06%, reflecting sharper selling pressure in the lower end of the market. On the sectoral front, Nifty IT was the clear outperformer, rising 1.77%, with Nifty Pharma adding 0.12%; on the losing side, Nifty Consumer Durables fell the most at 2.78%, followed by Nifty PSU Bank down 2.45%, Nifty Media declining 2.24%, and Nifty Auto shedding 1.83%.

Middle East Conflict

The Iran conflict remained the dominant overhang for global markets, with US President Donald Trump having warned Tehran on Sunday that time was running out, while a drone attack on a UAE nuclear facility over the weekend sharply dimmed hopes of a near-term ceasefire. The Pentagon has readied a series of military target plans including strikes on Iranian energy and infrastructure sites, and Trump is expected to meet his national security team again early this week to decide the path forward.

Oil Prices

Brent crude extended its rally to $111.29 a barrel, up $2.03 or 1.86%, briefly touching $112 a two-week high while US WTI climbed to $107.73, up 2.19%, as the continued blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and the UAE nuclear plant attack kept supply disruption fears elevated. Both contracts had already gained more than 7% last week as Trump-Xi talks in Beijing ended without any resolution on the conflict.

Asian Markets

Asian markets were broadly weak through the session, with Indonesia’s JSX Composite down 1.98%, the Hang Seng falling 1.50%, Australia’s ASX All Ordinaries shedding 1.52%, and the Nikkei 225 declining 0.97%, with only Vietnam’s HNX 30 and Thailand’s SET nudging marginally higher.

Morning Session

Indian markets opened sharply lower on Monday morning, with the Sensex shedding over 800 points and the Nifty breaching the 23,400 level at the open, spooked by a combination of surging crude prices, a weak rupee, and the intensifying Iran conflict. The gap-down start mirrored broadly negative cues from Wall Street — where the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq all fell between 1% and 1.54% on Friday and a uniformly red Asian session. However, selective buying in IT and pharma stocks provided a floor, enabling both indices to recover nearly half their morning losses by midday.

Source:

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