Mumbai: Indian stock markets opened sharply lower on Wednesday, September 9, as rising crude oil prices and escalating Middle East tensions weighed on sentiment. Heavy selling in information technology stocks added to the pressure.
The Nifty 50 opened more than 100 points lower at 23,522.05, while the BSE Sensex dropped over 350 points to 75,216.22. Both benchmark indices were down around 0.5% in early trade.
IT Stocks Lead Market Decline
Technology shares suffered the steepest losses, with the Nifty IT index falling around 3%.
Infosys dropped 3.34%, Tech Mahindra declined 2.73%, HCL Technologies lost 2.60%, Wipro fell 2.34% and TCS slipped 1.71%.
The Nifty MidSmall IT & Telecom index also fell about 2%. Financial services, private banks, auto and oil and gas stocks traded lower.
However, some sectors resisted the broader decline. Nifty Metal gained 0.39%, Consumer Durables rose 0.38% and Pharma advanced 0.27%.
Brent Crude Near $100 Adds Pressure
Rising crude oil prices remained a key concern, with Brent crude trading around $100 a barrel as tensions involving the US and Iran intensified. Oil prices rose for a fourth consecutive session following fresh Iranian attacks on US military assets.
Another pressure point is the booming IPO market, which has been drawing liquidity away from secondary-market equities.
Foreign institutional investors have sold around Rs 2.84 lakh crore of equities through exchanges so far this year while investing nearly Rs 36,000 crore in IPOs.
Nifty Levels to Watch
The 23,500-23,260-23,000 zone remains important for the Nifty. Consolidation near 23,500 or a move above 23,650 could potentially trigger short covering towards the 23,860-23,900 range.
Asian markets, meanwhile, traded mixed in early deals.
