New Delhi [India], May 11 (HBTV): Indian equity benchmarks opened in the red on Monday as geopolitical tensions, rising crude oil prices, and concerns over foreign exchange outflows weighed on investor sentiment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to curb foreign exchange outflows and weak global cues added pressure to domestic markets.
At the opening bell, the BSE Sensex stood at 76,378.03 points, marking a decline of 950.16 points or 1.23 per cent. Similarly, the Nifty 50 reached 23,900.25 points, down by 275.90 points or 1.14 per cent.
The jewellery sector faced heavy selling pressure after the Prime Minister urged citizens to conserve foreign exchange reserves. He advised the public to avoid unnecessary foreign travel, overseas vacations, and foreign weddings, while encouraging domestic tourism. He also suggested avoiding non-essential gold purchases for one year to reduce pressure on foreign exchange outflows.
Stock prices of major jewellers reacted sharply. Senco Gold Limited dropped 8.98 per cent to INR 332.60, while Titan Company Limited fell 5.34 per cent to INR 4,268.10. Kalyan Jewellers India Limited declined 7.43 per cent to INR 393.00, and PC Jeweller Limited fell 3.89 per cent to INR 9.13.
Ajay Bagga, a banking and market expert, said, 'India is a different story and the PM in a public gathering spoke of the energy supply and price challenges for the Indian economy and the need to take measures to reduce energy dependence and imports while conserving foreign exchange. Indian markets are pointing to a weak open. Expectations of petrol and diesel price hikes this week are high as OMC losses are running at INR 30,000 crores per month.'
On global developments, Bagga said, 'Markets are focusing on the AI/Big Tech momentum and ignoring the tail risks from a re-escalation from US-Iran. Netanyahu, in an interview, said that he sees the Iran war as not over till Iran's nuclear facilities are obliterated. The second-order conclusion is that China, which controls Iran, has not deemed it fit to help the Trump-Xi summit by pressurising Iran to agree to at least a temporary truce.'
He added that this reduces expectations from the Trump-Xi summit, stating, 'Expect Trump to transactionally try to blindside Xi, while the Chinese will come well prepared with countermeasures to keep the narrative in control.'
Sujan Hajra, Chief Economist at Anand Rathi, said in a report, 'Markets stayed optimistic, but nerves around crude never really left the room. Indian equities still ended higher, with broader markets outperforming as midcaps and smallcaps extended their strong rally. Autos and IT supported sentiment, while banks and metals struggled under earnings disappointments and rising global uncertainty.'
He added that India’s economy remains resilient with strengthening PMI activity and firm domestic demand, but higher crude prices, logistics disruptions, and geopolitical tensions around the Strait of Hormuz continue to raise inflation concerns.
'Central banks globally remained cautious on rate cuts as energy-led price pressures continued to complicate the outlook. Growth is holding up, but global risks are beginning to make resilience more expensive,' he said. (ANI)