Sensex, Nifty Crash in Early Trade as Middle East Crisis Deepens

From the Sensex pack, InterGlobe Aviation, Larsen & Toubro, Eternal, Adani Ports, Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement and Reliance Industries were among the top laggards.

The only company that won was Bharat Electronics.

Global oil reference Brent crude oil fell by 5.38 percent to $76.79 per barrel.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a coordinated US-Israeli airstrike on Tehran early on Saturday, while Iranian state media confirmed the death on Sunday.

Iran began firing missiles at Israel and Arab countries in the region in retaliation for the killing of its religious leader.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index were trading lower, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite index was trading in positive territory.

The US market closed lower on Friday.

“Uncertainty regarding the war in West Asia will have a major impact on the market in the near term. The biggest risk to the market is the energy risk arising from the rise in crude oil,” said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited. he said.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 7,536.36 billion on Friday, according to stock exchange data. However, Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth Rs 12,292.81 billion.

“The risk to investors goes beyond energy. Prolonged regional instability could disrupt trade routes, strain supply chains and tighten global financial conditions if inflation expectations accelerate again,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of online trading and wealth technology company Enrich Money.

On Friday, Sensex fell 961.42 points or 1.17 per cent to settle at 81,287.19. Nifty fell by 317.90 points, or 1.25 percent, to 25,178.65.