Sensex, Nifty Slip in Early Trade as Rising Crude Prices Weigh on Markets

From the Sensex pack, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, NTPC and Reliance Industries were among the laggards. The only winners of the package were Trent and Eternal. Brent crude oil, the global oil reference, traded at $96.20 per barrel, with an increase of 2.27 percent.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) disposed of stocks worth Rs 819.20 billion on Wednesday after a one-day break, stock exchange data showed.

Ponmudi R, CEO of online trading and wealth technology company Enrich Money, said investor sentiment remains fragile as rising tensions in the Middle East lead to a fresh rise in global oil prices and suppressed risk appetite.

“Markets were shaken after Yemen’s Houthi rebels attacked two Saudi oil tankers, opening a new front in the regional conflict and raising fears of further disruption to crude oil supplies,” Ponmudi said.

In Asian markets, South Korea’s KOSPI index increased by 3.15 percent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index were also trading higher, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite index was trading lower. US markets finished Wednesday in negative territory.

On Wednesday, the Sensex fell 715.06 points or 0.92 per cent to settle at 76,755.05. Nifty ended at 23,996.25 points, down 191.45 points or 0.79 percent.