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Indian stock markets opened on a weak note on Monday, reacting sharply to rising geopolitical tensions after the US-Iran conflict escalated over the weekend. Both benchmark indices faced strong selling pressure in the early trading session.
The Nifty 50 index opened at 24,939.75, falling by 172.65 points or 0.69 per cent, while the BSE Sensex began the day at 81,704.07, down by 704.10 points or 0.85 per cent. Experts highlighted that geopolitical conflicts often turn out to be good buying opportunities in the longer term. Ajay Bagga, Banking and market expert, told ANI, "Investors should remind themselves that geopolitical conflicts historically represent good buying opportunities. And so it will be for this Middle East conflict. It is not WWIII, no one wants that. Cash has good optionality in this situation, and it is good to keep some cash ready to deploy systematically if markets react downwards". In the commodity market, Brent crude oil prices surged over 1.4 per cent in the opening session, reaching USD 78.38 per barrel. The spike came amid fears that the conflict could disrupt oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil transport. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in conversation with ANI stated there was no immediate threat to India's oil supply. Puri sadi "We had diversified the sources of supply. Out of the 5.5 million barrels of crude oil that India consumes daily, about 1.5-2 million come through the Straits of Hormuz. We import roughly 4 million barrels through other routes. Our oil marketing companies have enough stocks. Most of them have stocks up to three weeks. One of them has 25 days' stock. We can increase the supply of crude through other routes". Meanwhile, broader market indices on the NSE also witnessed declines in Monday's opening. The Nifty Smallcap 100 fell 0.73 per cent, the Nifty Midcap 100 declined 0.67 per cent, and the Nifty 100 lost 0.7 per cent. All sectoral indices on the NSE were trading in red, with Nifty IT and Nifty PSU Bank facing the highest selling pressure. Globally, the markets are under pressure after US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that the US had launched airstrikes on three of Iran's nuclear sites--Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. A "full payload of bombs" was dropped on Fordow, Trump said. In other Asian markets, the mood was broadly negative. Taiwan's weighted index was down over 1 per cent, South Korea's KOSPI dropped 0.8 per cent, and Japan's Nikkei 225 fell by 0.41 per cent. Only Hong Kong's Hang Seng index bucked the trend. Market sentiment remained tense, with analysts warning of possible asymmetric retaliation by Iran. While the US dollar edged up, cryptocurrencies and gold remained largely flat. Markets remain volatile as missile attacks continue, and oil remains jittery with 24 per cent of supply routes under threat. (ANI)
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