- Indian stock market extends its losing streak for the fourth consecutive day.
- Escalating Middle East tensions contribute to market downturn.
- Elevated crude oil prices weigh heavily on investor sentiment.
The Indian stock market extended the losing momentum for the fourth consecutive day amid elevated crude prices and escalating tension in the Middle East weighing on the sentiment of investors. Last seen, Sensex, the 30-share index of BSE, was trading at 76,548.29, down 0.27 per cent or 206.76 points from last day's closing of 76,755.05. Nifty50 was quoted at 23,945.45, down 0.21 per cent or 50.80 points.
Top Losers And Gainers
Adani Ports, HDFC Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, NTPC, Tata Steel, Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, Maruti and Asian Paints were trading lower. Mahindra and Mahindra, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Trent, and L&T were the top gainers.
Crude Breaches $96 Per Barrel
Crude prices were elevated in the international market. Last seen, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was quoted 2.27 per cent higher at $96.20 per barrel.
According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 819.20 crore on Wednesday.
"Indian equity markets opened on a weak note, extending the previous session's losses despite a broadly supportive global backdrop. Selling pressure remained evident in early trade, with heavyweight sectors including pharmaceuticals, real estate and banking weighing on the benchmark indices," said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money.
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The weakness in Indian equities appeared to be driven primarily by domestic factors rather than a broader global risk-off sentiment, Ponmudi said.
International Markets
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi jumped 3.15 per cent. 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 closed in the negative zone on Wednesday.