Opening Bell: Sensex Opens 600 Pts Lower, Nifty Below 23,500 Amid Israel-US-Iran Conflict

Indian stock markets opened in red on Friday, March 13, mirroring intense pressure due to the Israel-US-Iran conflict, oil prices yet again rising above the $100 mark and a sharp decline in the rupee.

The BSE Sensex opened at 75,444 as compared to its previous close of 76,034, declining 700 points, or nearly 1%, to the intraday low of 75,326.

The Nifty 50 opened at 23,462 as against its previous close of 23,639, nosediving 200 points, or 1%, to an intraday low of 23,417.

The bourses continued losses for the third consecutive trading session. In this week, the Sensex has lost 3,600 points, or nearly 5%, while the Nifty 50 has shredded 1,000 points, or above 4%.

Meanwhile, investors have lost nearly Rs 14 lakh crore this week as the overall market capitalisation of firms listed on the BSE has dropped to nearly Rs 436 lakh crore as against nearly Rs 450 lakh crore on Friday, March 6.

Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market Expert, told ANI that Indian markets are facing continued pressure due to strong foreign investor outflows.

"Indian markets are pointing to continued weakness. FPIs have been consistent, high sellers. Weakness in global markets usually translates into more FPI outflows from India to meet margin calls elsewhere, adding one more layer of negativity to Indian markets," Bagga said.

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Key Triggers Behind Sensex, Nifty Opening In Red

Israel-US-Iran Conflict: The US-Israeli conflict with Iran, which started on February 28, continues with tensions escalating, especially with the effective blockage of Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime trade choke point, especially for oil and gas supplies to Asian nations such as China, and India.

Crude Oil Prices: At the time of writing this report, the price of brent crude stood at $100 per barrel, signalling pressure on India's import bill. The surge in oil prices impact the current account deficit, places inflationary pressure. "Every 10 rise in oil prices, if passed onto consumers fully, affects GDP growth by 15 bps, inflation by 30 bps, fiscal deficit by 0 15 of GDP C/A deficit by 0 4 of GDP," according to a Union Bank of India report.

Rupee vs USD: The INR touched a new intra-day low on Thursday, closing in at 24 paise down. making it its lowest level of 92.25 against the US Dollar (USD) due to dragged down by elevated crude oil prices and massive withdrawal of foreign capital.

Gold, Silver Rates Today: Gold and Silver rate declined marginally on MCX on Friday as surging crude oil prices amid prolonged US-Iran war have reduced expectations for near-term U.S. interest rate cuts. Losses were capped on the back of a softer dollar. While the MCX silver price fell 0.7% to Rs 2,66,001 per kg, the MCX gold price was down 0.3% to Rs 1,59,764 per 10 grams.