Sensex, Nifty sink in early trade as US-Iran conflict rattles investors

Benchmark stock market indices tanked in early trade on Monday, tracking global markets over escalating tensions in the Middle East as US attacked Iran. IT stocks were major laggards, dragging the market down.The S&P BSE Sensex was down by 791.58 points to 81,616.59, while the NSE Nifty lost 244.25 points to 24,868.15 as of 9:53 am.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said that even though the US bombing of Iran's three nuclear facilities has worsened the crisis in West Asia, the impact on the market is likely to be limited.advertisement
"The uncertain factor now is the timing and nature of the Iranian response. If Iran targets and damage the US defence facilities in the region or hurts US military personnel seriously, the US response can be huge and this might further worsen the crisis," he added.Bharat Electronics Limited led the few gainers with a 1.64% jump, followed by Bharti Airtel up 0.39%. However, the market opened with widespread selling pressure.On the losing side, Infosys crashed 2.01% to lead the decliners, followed by Hindustan Unilever falling 1.64%, Asian Paints down 1.30%, HCL Technologies declining 1.24%, and PowerGrid slipping 1.19%.The broader market indices opened weak with Nifty Midcap 100 falling 0.26%, Nifty Smallcap down 0.22%, while India VIX surged 4.86%. Only one sector managed to open in positive territory - Nifty Media gained 0.18%.advertisementMost other sectors opened in the red. Nifty IT led the decline with a 1.26% fall, followed by Nifty Auto down 0.91%, Nifty Financial Services falling 0.84%, Nifty FMCG declining 0.84%, Nifty Private Bank down 0.74%, Nifty Realty slipping 0.55%, Nifty Healthcare falling 0.49%, Nifty Oil & Gas declining 0.46%, Nifty Pharma down 0.37%, Nifty Consumer Durables slipping 0.37%, Nifty Metal falling 0.33%, and Nifty PSU Bank declining 0.27%.(Disclaimer: The views, opinions, recommendations, and suggestions expressed by experts/brokerages in this article are their own and do not reflect the views of the India Today Group. It is advisable to consult a qualified broker or financial advisor before making any actual investment or trading choices.)Must Watch

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Hindustan Times

30 minutes ago

• Hindustan Times

Iran oil doomsday in Hormuz may be more fear than reality: Bousso

, not 55km , in paragraph 8) Iran oil doomsday in Hormuz may be more fear than reality: Bousso * US strikes on Iran spur fear of disruption to Middle East oil exports * Iran able to block the Strait of Hormuz, has tried in the past * Disruptions likely to be met by swift response from US Navy By Ron Bousso LONDON, - U.S. strikes on several Iranian nuclear sites represent a meaningful escalation of the Middle East conflict that could lead Tehran to disrupt vital exports of oil and gas from the region, sparking a surge in energy prices. But history tells us that any disruption would likely be short-lived. Investors and energy markets have been on high alert since Israel launched a wave of surprise airstrikes across Iran on June 13, fearing disruption to oil and gas flows out of the Middle East, particularly through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which around 20% of global oil and gas demand flows. Benchmark Brent crude prices have risen by 10% to over $77 a barrel since June 13. While Israel and Iran have targeted elements of each other's energy infrastructure, there has been no significant disruption to maritime activity in the region so far. But President Donald Trump's decision to join Israel by bombing three of Iran's main nuclear sites in the early hours of Sunday could alter Tehran's calculus. Iran, left with few cards to play, could retaliate by hitting U.S. targets across the region and disrupting oil flows. While such a move would almost certainly lead to a sharp spike in global energy prices, history and current market dynamics suggest any move would likely be less damaging than investors may fear. CAN THEY DO IT? The first question to ask is whether Iran is actually capable of seriously disrupting or blocking the Strait of Hormuz. The answer is probably yes. Iran could attempt to lay mines across the Strait, which is 34 km wide at its narrowest point. The country's army or the paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps could also try to strike or seize vessels in the Gulf, a method they have used on several occasions in recent years. Moreover, while Hormuz has never been fully blocked, it has been disrupted several times. During the 1980s Iran-Iraq war, the two sides engaged in the so-called "Tanker Wars" in the Gulf. Iraq targeted Iranian ships, and Iran attacked commercial ships, including Saudi and Kuwaiti oil tankers and even U.S. navy ships. Following appeals from Kuwait, then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan deployed the navy between 1987 and 1988 to protect convoys of oil tankers in what was known as Operation Earnest Will. It concluded shortly after a U.S. navy ship shot down Air Iran flight 655, killing all of its 290 passengers on board. Tensions in the strait flared up again at the end of 2007 in a series of skirmishes between the Iranian and U.S. navies. This included one incident where Iranian speedboats approached U.S. warships, though no shots were fired. In April 2023, Iranian troops seized the Advantage Sweet crude tanker, which was chartered by Chevron, in the Gulf of Oman. The vessel was released more than a year later. Iranian disruption of maritime traffic through the Gulf is therefore certainly not unprecedented, but any attempt would likely be met by a rapid, forceful response from the U.S. navy, limiting the likelihood of a persistent supply shock. HISTORY LESSON Indeed, history has shown that severe disruptions to global oil supplies have tended to be short-lived. Iraq's invasion of neighbouring Kuwait in August 1990 caused the price of Brent crude to double to $40 a barrel by mid-October. Prices returned to the pre-invasion level by January 1991 when a U.S.-led coalition started Operation Desert Storm, which led to the liberation of Kuwait the following month. The start of the second Gulf war between March and May 2003 was even less impactful. A 46% rally in the lead-up to the war between November 2002 and March 2003 was quickly reversed in the days preceding the start of the U.S.-led military campaign. Similarly, Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sparked a sharp rally in oil prices to $130 a barrel, but prices returned to their pre-invasion levels of $95 by mid-August. These relatively quick reversals of oil price spikes were largely thanks to the ample spare production capacity available at the time and the fact that the rapid oil price increase curbed demand, says Tamas Varga, an analyst at oil brokerage PVM. Global oil markets were also rocked during the 1973 Arab oil embargo and after the 1979 revolution in Iran, when strikes on the country's oilfields severely disrupted production. But those did not involve the blocking of Hormuz and were not met with a direct U.S. military response. SPARE CACITY The current global oil market certainly has spare capacity. OPEC , an alliance of producing nations, today holds around 5.7 million barrels per day in excess capacity, of which Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates hold 4.2 million bpd. The concern today is that the vast majority of the oil from Saudi Arabia and the UAE is shipped via the Strait of Hormuz. The two Gulf powers could bypass the strait by oil pipelines, however. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, producing around 9 million bpd, has a crude pipeline that runs from the Abqaiq oilfield on the Gulf coast in the east to the Red Sea port city of Yanbu in the west. The pipeline has capacity of 5 million bpd and was able to temporarily expand its capacity by another 2 million bpd in 2019. The UAE, which produced 3.3 million bpd of crude oil in April, has a 1.5 million bpd pipeline linking its onshore oilfields to the Fujairah oil terminal that is east of the Strait of Hormuz. But this western route could be exposed to attacks from the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, who have severely disrupted shipping through the Suez Canal in recent years. Additionally, Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar currently have no clear alternatives to the strait. It is possible that Iran will choose not to take the dramatic step of blocking the strait in part because doing so would disrupt its own oil exports. Tehran may also consider any further escalation fruitless in light of U.S. involvement and will instead try to downplay the importance of the U.S. strikes and come back to nuclear negotiations. In the meantime, spooked energy markets, fearing further escalation, are apt to respond to the U.S. strikes with a sharp jump in crude prices. But even in a doomsday scenario where the Strait of Hormuz is blocked, history suggests markets should not expect any supply shock to be persistent. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest , your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn and X. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.

The Hindu

32 minutes ago

• The Hindu

Markets slump on heightened tensions in Middle East; Sensex drops 500 points

Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled on Monday (June 23, 2025), as intensifying tensions in the Middle East after the U.S. bombed three major nuclear sites in Iran unnerved investors. After losing over 900 points in day trade, the 30-share index recovered some lost ground to close with a loss of 511.38 points or 0.62% at 81,896.79. During the day, it tumbled 931.41 points or 1.13% to 81,476.76. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 140.50 points or 0.56% to 24,971.90. The U.S. bombed three major nuclear sites – Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan – in Iran, directly engaging itself in the Israel-Iran conflict. From the Sensex pack, HCL Tech, Infosys, Larsen & Toubro, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Tata Consultancy Services and Maruti were the biggest laggards. In contrast, Trent, Bharat Electronics, Bajaj Finance and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the gainers. In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 index settled lower, while Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended higher. European markets were trading lower in mid-session. U.S. markets ended mostly lower on Friday (June 20, 2025). Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.49% to $77.39 a barrel. 'Last Friday (June 20, 2025), markets buildup in anticipation of easing Middle East tensions, following the U.S. announcement of a two-week window to deliberate its involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict. However, the unexpected U.S. airstrike on Iran's nuclear facilities over the weekend disrupted those expectations, triggering a sharp rise in crude oil prices and leading to consolidation in the domestic equity market,' Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said. 'Despite the initial setback, the market recovered some of its losses, supported by gains in capital goods and metal stocks, as fears of an immediate oil supply disruption remained low,' he added. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹7,940.70 crore on Friday (June 20, 2025), according to exchange data. On Friday (June 20, 2025), the 30-share BSE Sensex surged 1,046.30 points or 1.29% to settle at 82,408.17. The Nifty climbed 319.15 points or 1.29% to 25,112.40.

Mint

an hour ago

• Mint

Indias basmati rice shipments to Iran stuck at ports amid Middle East conflict

New Delhi, Jun 23 (PTI) Around 1,00,000 tonnes of basmati rice destined for Iran are stranded at Indian ports due to the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict, the All India Rice Exporters Association said on Monday. Association president Satish Goyal said around 1,00,000 tonnes of basmati rice meant for Iran is currently stuck at Indian ports, with Iran accounting for 18-20 per cent of India's total basmati rice exports. The shipments are primarily held up at Kandla and Mundra ports in Gujarat, with neither vessels nor insurance available for Iran-bound cargo due to the Middle East conflict, Goyal told PTI. International conflicts are typically not covered under standard shipping insurance policies, leaving exporters unable to dispatch their consignments, he added. The delay in shipments and uncertainty around payments could cause severe financial stress, he said, adding that basmati rice prices in the domestic market have already dropped by ₹ 4-5 per kg. The association is in touch with agri-export promotion body APEDA on the issue. A meeting with Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is scheduled for June 30 to discuss the crisis, he added. Iran is India's second-largest basmati rice market after Saudi Arabia. India exported around 1 million tonnes of the aromatic grain to Iran during the 2024-25 fiscal year, which ended in March. India exported approximately 6 million tonnes of basmati rice during 2024-25, with demand primarily driven by the Middle East and West Asian markets. Other major buyers include Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and the United States. The Israel-Iran conflict has escalated significantly in recent weeks, with both sides exchanging heavy strikes and the US becoming directly involved in the hostilities. The shipping disruption adds to challenges facing Indian rice exporters, who have previously dealt with payment delays and currency issues in the Iranian market due to international sanctions.