Sensex, Nifty Extend Losses For Third Day As Oil Nears $95 On West Asia Tensions

Indian equity markets extended their losing streak to a third consecutive session on Wednesday, as escalating tensions in West Asia, rising crude oil prices and a broad global selloff pushed investors deeper into risk-off mode.

The BSE Sensex fell 373.93 points, or 0.49 per cent, to close at 76,570.35, after plunging as much as 808.56 points during the session to hit 76,135.72. The NSE Nifty declined 141.35 points, or 0.59 per cent, to finish at 23,914.45, slipping below the psychologically important 24,000 mark.

The pressure on Indian stocks mirrored weakness across major Asian and European markets. South Korea’s Kospi crashed 3.99 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.85 per cent. Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also ended lower, while European markets remained in negative territory. US stocks had closed lower on Tuesday.

A key concern for investors was the renewed escalation in US-Iran hostilities, which has intensified fears over global energy supplies and reduced hopes of an early reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for international oil shipments.

Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 0.40 per cent to USD 95.13 a barrel, adding to concerns over inflation and corporate costs in oil-importing economies such as India. Higher global bond yields further weakened investor appetite for riskier assets.

“Indian equity markets extended their losing streak to a third consecutive session,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, noting that renewed tensions had heightened concerns over energy supplies and kept investors firmly in risk-off mode.

Among Sensex constituents, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, Bharat Electronics and Infosys were among the biggest losers. Adani Ports, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid, NTPC and Titan bucked the trend.

Despite the selling pressure, foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 1,143.38 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data. The previous session had seen the Sensex slip 12.99 points and the Nifty decline 24.60 points.

With crude approaching the $100 mark and geopolitical uncertainty clouding the global outlook, investors are now watching energy prices and developments around the Strait of Hormuz closely for signs of whether the market pressure will deepen.