Indian Markets Plummet Amid Renewed US-Iran Tensions

Indian stock markets traded cautiously on Friday, with benchmark indices declining by 0.7% each in morning session due to renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran.

The Sensex fell as much as 0.71% or over 500 points to hit an intraday low of 77,291.72 in early trade, while Nifty slipped by 168 points or 0.69% to 24,158.15.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Private Bank, Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Auto, and Nifty Oil & Gas were the top losers.

Oil prices surged on the back of renewed tensions, with international benchmark Brent crude jumping 2.82% to $102.89 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) advanced 4% to $98.64 per barrel.