For the second consecutive day, Indian equity markets opened lower on Wednesday as tensions elevated on the war front after the United States and Iran attacked each other’s assets in the Gulf region.
The BSE Sensex opened 142 points, or 0.19 percent lower, at 74,507 points compared to its previous close of 74,649 points.
Similarly, the NSE Nifty opened 68 points, or 0.28 percent lower, at 23,415 points against Tuesday’s closing level of 23,483 points.
As trading progressed, both benchmark indices extended losses and traded with a decline of over 1 percent each.
The decline came after the United States and Iran attacked each other’s assets in the Gulf region.
According to Aljazeera, the United States military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces conducted “self-defence” strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island and “defeated multiple” Iranian missiles and drones, as civilian vessels and regional allies Kuwait and Bahrain came under attack.
Iran’s Tasnim new agency cited the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirming it launched retaliatory missile and drone attacks on US bases in the region, but did not name Kuwait or Bahrain, following the Qeshm strikes.
However, the US President Donald Trump has indicated that peace talks may continue despite the heightened hostilities.
Market sentiment has remained cautious as investors awaited greater clarity on ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran.
The lack of a breakthrough in peace talks kept traders on the sidelines, while continued selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) added pressure on domestic equities.
Around 928 stocks advanced on the National Stock Exchange, while nearly 2,082 stocks declined, indicating the breadth of the sell off.
Information technology stocks, which were the leaders in market rally of the past two days, emerged as the biggest losers.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) lost the most among the Nifty 50 shares, declining over 7.5 percent.
Infosys lost more than 3.3 percent, while HCLTech, Tech Mahindra and Wipro declined 3.6 percent, 4.7 percent and 2 percent, respectively.
Among the sectoral indices, Nifty IT emerged as the worst-performer, losing 4.53 percent.
All the 21 sectoral indices traded in red.
