Indian benchmark indices Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex gave up their early gains on Monday as concerns over a potential oil and gas supply disruption weighed on investor sentiment.
Among the top gainers on the Nifty50 were UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, JSW Steel and InterGlobe Aviation. However, broader markets underperformed the benchmark indices. The Nifty Midcap 100 slipped about 0.28 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 declined around 0.75 per cent during the session.
Sectorally, the Nifty Realty emerged as the worst-performing sectoral index soon after the opening bell. On the other hand, the Nifty FMCG index outperformed most sectors in early trade.
Global cues weigh on markets
Most Asia-Pacific markets traded lower on Monday morning as investors remained cautious amid concerns that elevated energy prices could hurt inflation and economic growth. Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kospi were down about 0.73 per cent and 0.20 per cent respectively in early trade.
Wall Street had also ended lower in the previous session. On Friday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.61 per cent, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.26 per cent. The decline came as Brent Crude Oil prices remained above the $100-per-barrel mark after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil transit corridor.
Oil prices continued to stay firm during the Asian session, with Brent crude holding well above $100 per barrel amid rising concerns over the safety of oil infrastructure in Iran. According to reports citing Mike Waltz, Donald Trump is considering options to target oil facilities at Kharg Island.
Brent crude’s May futures contract was trading about 0.50 per cent higher at $103.75 per barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange. Meanwhile, precious metals traded lower, with Gold futures down 0.96 per cent and Silver futures falling 1.55 per cent.
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