Oil Shock Drags Stock Markets Lower

Indian stock markets ended sharply lower as surging global crude oil prices, geopolitical tensions and weak cues from overseas markets weighed on investor sentiment. The market value of BSE-listed companies declined by ₹9.17 lakh crore to ₹472.38 lakh crore. The Sensex fell 777.94 points to close at 74,003.82, while the Nifty dropped 279.50 points to settle at 23,118.60. The Sensex slipped to a three-month low and the Nifty touched a five-month low. The rupee weakened 34 paise against the US dollar to close at 95.88, while Brent crude rose 3.38% to $109.24 a barrel. Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth ₹2,977.86 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth ₹2,686.05 crore.

Most Sensex constituents ended in the red, with major declines seen in Bharat Electronics, IndiGo, Titan, Bajaj Finserv, Adani Ports, Mahindra & Mahindra, SBI and Trent. IT stocks, however, performed well amid expectations that a slower pace of artificial intelligence development could ease concerns surrounding traditional IT services. HCLTech, Hexaware Technologies, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, TCS and Wipro gained. Several Tata Group stocks also advanced following reports that the RBI rejected Tata Sons’ application to surrender its NBFC licence, potentially requiring it to list on stock exchanges. Pranav Constructions also closed its debut trading session in positive territory.