Stock Market Today: The domestic equity indices traded sharply lower in early trade on Monday on weak global cues amid a significant increase in crude oil prices due to escalating tension in West Asia. BSE Sensex started the session with a huge gap-down at 72,566.22, down about 1,000 points from last day's closing of 73,583.22, as investors' sentiment remained highly cautious after crude prices soared over $115 per barrel. NSE Nifty50 opened at 22,549.65, down over 250 points from last day's closing of 22,819.60.
At the time of writing, the Sensex was down 485 points or 0.66 per cent to 73,104.75, while the Nifty50 was quoted at 22,683.35, down 136.25 points or 0.60 per cent.
Meanwhile, Brent Crude was trading at $115.1, up $2.49 or 2,21 per cent. WTI Crude rate traded past $101 per barrel.
"Indian equity markets opened sharply lower, driven by negative global cues and continued escalation in Middle East geopolitical tensions, with the US–Iran–Israel conflict widening amid Houthi attacks on Israel. The decline was further exacerbated by a sharp surge in crude oil prices, with Brent crossing the $115–116 per barrel range, marking a significant intraday spike," said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money.
Top Losers And Gainers
Kotak Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, SBI, Trent, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Bajaj FinServ, Eternal, HCL Tech, Indigo, Asian Paint, Infosys, Mahindra And Mahindra, and Sun Pharma were the top losers from the Sensex basket. BEL, Reliance, PowerGrid and NTPC were quoted higher.
Banking, Fin Services, Auto and IT stocks witnessed notable selling pressure in early trade. At the same time broader market remained volatile and cautious.