Sensex Sinks Over 700 Points, Nifty Slips Below 23,250 As Oil Climbs To $108

Indian equity markets opened sharply lower on Friday as investors turned cautious amid a surge in crude oil prices and heightened tensions in West Asia.

The Sensex fell more than 700 points in early trade, while the Nifty slipped below the 23,250 level as selling pressure spread across most sectors.

At 9:18 am, the BSE Sensex was down 701.63 points, or 0.94%, at 74,200.96. The NSE Nifty declined 239.05 points, or 1.02%, to 23,237.75.

The sell-off was not limited to large-cap stocks. The Nifty Next 50 dropped 1.45%, while the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 declined 1.28% and 1.22%, respectively, indicating broad weakness across the market.

Metals, Realty And Banks Lead The Decline

Metal stocks came under the most pressure, with the Nifty Metal index falling 2.98% in early trading. Nifty Realty declined 2.41%, while Financial Services, Consumer Durables and Chemicals also fell more than 1%.

Banking stocks were among the major drags. The Nifty Bank index declined 1.34%, while Nifty Financial Services slipped 1.55%. PSU bank stocks fell 1.42%, compared with a 1.28% decline in private banks.

Other major sectoral indices also traded in the red. Nifty Auto dropped 1.42%, Cement fell 1.29% and Oil & Gas declined 0.67%. FMCG stocks were relatively stable, losing 0.45%.

IT Stocks Buck The Trend

Information technology stocks provided some relief in an otherwise weak market. The Nifty IT index gained 0.44% in early trade, making it the only major sectoral index to remain in positive territory at the time.

The Nifty Healthcare index fell 0.56%, while the Pharma index declined 0.58%.

Crude Oil Surge Adds To Market Pressure

The weak market opening came as Brent crude climbed to a four-month high of $108.77 per barrel. Intensifying conflict in West Asia and disruptions around the Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz have raised concerns over global oil supplies.

For India, higher crude prices are a key concern because the country imports a large share of its oil requirements. A sustained rise in energy costs could put pressure on inflation, corporate margins and the broader economy.

Market volatility also increased, with the India VIX rising 4.95% to 12.38 as investors adopted a more cautious stance.

Stocks In Focus

Among Sensex constituents, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and Infosys were among the early gainers. On the other hand, LT, HDFC Bank, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the major laggards.

The sharp decline followed a weaker previous session, when the Sensex ended at 74,902.59 and the Nifty closed at 23,477.80.