Stock Market Today, July 16, 2026: Sensex Surges 260 points, Nifty Up 80 points at Open, Tracking Wall Street Gains; Oil Prices Climb After Iran-US Crisis Escalates

Mumbai, July 16: Indian benchmark indices opened firmly higher on Thursday, tracking a strong overnight close on Wall Street. The Sensex was up 262.08 points or 0.34 per cent to 77,447.51 while the Nifty50 advanced 83.35 points or 0.35 per cent to 24,161.85 at the opening bell. Asian markets traded mixed, with Hong Kong rallying even as Tokyo slid lower. Brent crude extended its climb for a fourth session after fresh US attacks on Iran overnight, but domestic investors largely looked past rising geopolitical tensions to keep sentiment firmly buoyant. Buoyed by expectations of strong earnings in the coming days, most market participants shrugged off the Middle East crisis. 

Gainers & Losers 

HCL Technologies (HCLTECH) led the gainers on the Sensex, rising 2.65 per cent to Rs 1,199 from its previous close of Rs 1,168, followed by Infosys (INFY) (+1.9 per cent), Tech Mahindra (TECHM) (+1.51 per cent), Wipro (WIPRO) (+1.44 per cent), and TCS (TCS) (+1.29 per cent). SBI Life (SBILIFE) was the top loser on the Sensex, falling 1.15 per cent to Rs 1,845 from Rs 1,866.4, followed by Grasim (GRASIM) (-0.33 per cent), ONGC (ONGC) (-0.23 per cent), Bajaj Finserv (BAJAJFINSV) (-0.21 per cent) and Eicher Motors (EICHERMOT) (-0.17 per cent). 

Broad Markets & Sectoral Performance 

Broad market indices remained uniformly positive, with Nifty Midcap Select rising the most (up 0.47 per cent), followed by Nifty Smallcap 100 (up 0.43 per cent) and Nifty Smallcap 50 (up 0.39 per cent). There were no losers among broad market indices as the volatility index or VIX eased down 2.03 per cent.  

Sectorally, most bourses traded strongly positive, with Nifty IT outperforming peers (+1.52 per cent), followed by Nifty Consumer Durables (+1.19 per cent) and Nifty Metal (+0.33 per cent). The worst performers were Nifty Midsmall Financial Services (-0.52 per cent), followed by Nifty Financial Services Ex- Bank (-0.42 per cent) and Nifty Realty (-0.33 per cent). 

Asian Markets on Thursday Morning 

Asian markets traded mixed on Thursday morning. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.40 per cent and Pakistan’s KSE 100 jumped 1.02 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 plummeted 2.84 per cent and Vietnam’s HNX 30 fell 2.09 per cent. China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.88 per cent and Australia’s All Ordinaries edged down 0.19 per cent. Benchmark indexes were mixed across Asia, as investors weighed tensions between Iran and the US against another corporate earnings season. Some markets shrugged off geopolitical concerns and traded firmly higher, despite climbing oil prices. 

Wall Street on Wednesday 

Wall Street closed firmly higher on Wednesday, setting markets around the world for more gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 150.37 points or 0.29 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 162.22 points or 0.62 per cent. The S& P 500 added 28.81 points or 0.38 per cent and Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite rose 0.27 per cent. Wall Street’s gains came despite oil prices climbing through the session, indicating investors are largely shrugging off geopolitical tensions as they remain optimistic corporate earnings will drive equities higher. 

Iran War 

US forces carried out fresh strikes on Iran on Wednesday, targeting coastal defences and missile sites after re-imposing a naval blockade on Iranian ports in the Gulf. Tehran responded fiercely, with Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf saying “An extremely dangerous and existential war has started against Iran by America.” Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it had carried out missile strikes on military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan. Iran had fired several missiles at US forces in Iraq earlier this week. The situation in the Middle East remains highly volatile after yesterday’s missile strikes shattered the ceasefire agreed last month, though many analysts believe outright war remains the unlikely outcome. US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Iran ‘wants to make a deal’ so badly, while threatening to have Iran’s military ‘destroyed.’ 

Oil Prices 

Oil prices rose for a fourth consecutive session on Thursday as markets continued to digest tensions between Iran and the US escalating into all-out war. Brent crude futures added 33 cents to $85.28 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 42 cents to $80.02 a barrel during Asian trading hours, hovering near monthly highs. Oil prices had risen through Wednesday’s session after Iran launched missile strikes on US military bases in Iraq and President Trump warned Tehran would face ‘sanctions like they have never seen before’ if any Iranians were killed.  

Prices have surged due to fears of war breaking out across the Middle East and disrupting oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and LNG trade passed prior to the conflict. Some analysts have flagged the potential for Iran to retaliate through its Houthi proxies in Yemen and shut the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, choking off another critical shipping route. Bank Goldman Sachs said Brent crude prices could swing from the $60s to over $110 a barrel based on how the situation unfolds. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday said crude inventories declined by 1.7 million barrels for the week ended July 5, compared with expectations for a fall of 2.6 million barrels. 

How Indian Markets Ended Yesterday 

Indian benchmark indices ended marginally higher on Wednesday after erasing most of their sharp gains from the day’s open, as buying in banking, capital goods, consumer durables and oil & gas stocks cushioned weakness in metal, IT and FMCG shares. At close, the Sensex was up 130.49 points or 0.17 per cent at 77,185.43 while the Nifty50 rose 26.45 points or 0.11 per cent to 24,078.50. Market breadth remained positive throughout the session and broader markets outperformed the headline indices. The India VIX dropped over 3 per cent to signal easing volatility. 

Sources:

• bseindia.com
• nseindia.com
• https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-threatens-block-more-vital-seaways-trump-orders-renewed-iran-blockade-2026-07-15/
• https://www.reuters.com/markets/stocks/americas/
• https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-rise-4th-day-us-strikes-iran-raise-fears-wider-conflict-2026-07-16/