Markets trade lower in early deals amid rising crude prices, geopolitical tensions

NEW DELHI — Domestic equity markets traded lower in early deals on Wednesday amid rising crude oil prices and continued geopolitical tensions.

Sensex declined as much as 0.34 per cent or 273 points to 77,881, hitting an intraday low in the morning trade and Nifty decreased 81 points or 0.33 per cent to 24,390.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Metal was top gainer and rose 0.86 per cent, while Nifty PSU Bank gained 0.60 per cent. Nifty Auto also advanced 0.23 per cent.

On the downside, Nifty FMCG fell 0.64 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty at 0.58 per cent and Nifty Healthcare Index at 0.41 per cent. Meanwhile, Nifty IT declined 0.38 per cent.

Market experts said the benchmarks were moving sideways as rising crude prices and geopolitical tensions continued to restrain an upside breakout.

“The market is defying a breakout on the upside and is moving sideways. The principal factor restraining a rally is the strengthening Brent crude which has again moved above $89 level,” they said.

They further noted that intermittent US-Iran skirmishes, including the latest attack by the US military on a Panama-flagged container ship, and Iran's hardening stance on reopening the Strait of Hormuz could keep crude prices elevated and constrain the market.

On the positive side, India's growth outlook is improving with the latest SBI report projecting FY27 GDP growth at 8 per cent, compared with the RBI's 6.7 per cent estimate.

“If this turns out to be true, corporate earnings for FY27 will be much better-than-expected. This is a bullish factor,” the experts said.

Moreover, international oil benchmark Brent crude traded about 1 per cent higher at $89.87 per barrel. Similarly, US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 1.14 per cent at $84.14.

Asian markets showed a mixed trend. Nikkei traded marginally up in early morning trade, Hang Seng slipped 1 per cent and KOSPI jumped over 4 per cent.