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Informist, Friday, Jun. 13, 2025

By Akash Mandal

MUMBAI – Benchmark indices came off their intraday lows but ended lower Friday as crude oil prices surged after Israel targeted nuclear sites of Iran. Both the indices ended below the levels they were at before the Reserve Bank of India's higher-than-expected repo rate cut and reduction in the cash reserve ratio.

Early in the day, Israel said it had struck Iran's nuclear bases as part of "Operation Rising Lion" to stop it from developing nuclear weapons. The attack also targeted military commanders and scientists, killing Iran's army chief Mohammad Bagheri. Iran has since retaliated and launched more than 100 drones towards Israel, CNBC reported, as conflict in the region intensified as Jordan intercepted some of the drones.

Following the attack, crude oil prices surged over 13% to $78.50 per barrel, the highest level since Jan. 27, due to worries about a potential disruption in supply of crude oil as the conflict intensifies. Iran holds over 9% of the world's crude oil reserves and currently produces over 3% of the world's crude oil output. At 1533 IST, the August contract of the Brent Crude Oil futures traded over 7% higher at $74.35 per barrel. The fall in crude prices helped the domestic indices come off their intraday lows. The Nifty 50 had fallen below 24500 points intraday -- the first time since May 22.

The Nifty 50 closed the day 169.60 points or 0.7% lower at 24718.60 points. The index had fallen more than 400 points to the day's low of 24473.00 points when the market opened. On Thursday, too, the indices had closed lower on fears of conflict in West Asia. Oil marketing companies such as Bharat Petroleum Corp., Hindustan Petroleum Corp., and Indian Oil Corp. came off their intraday lows but still closed around 2% lower. Indraprastha Gas, Mahanagar Gas, and GAIL (India) closed 1-2% lower. On the other hand, oil exploration companies such as Oil India and Oil and Natural Gas Corp., which produce and sell crude oil, ended nearly 2% higher each. The BSE Sensex closed at 81118.60 points, down 573.38 points or 0.7%.

Broader market indices also ended lower. The India VIX, which indicates the volatility in the market, had surged 14% during the session due to the uncertainty in the market and broad sell-off. The indicator ended nearly 8% higher at 15.08.

Barring Nifty India Defence, Nifty Media, Nifty Realty, Nifty Healthcare, and Nifty IT, all other sectoral indices ended in the red. In fact, defence stocks were among the few which ended the session with significant gains in an otherwise weak market. The sectoral index gained 1.5%, with Zen Technologies, Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers, and Data Patterns (India) ending 2-4% higher. The sectoral index had fallen nearly 5% over the past five sessions because of profit booking. It had risen sharply following the terrorist attack at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Apr. 22.

Shares of automobile ancillary companies such as Samvardhana Motherson International and Sona BLW Precision Forgings ended 1% and 2% lower, respectively, after US President Donald Trump late Thursday hinted at the possibility of hiking automobile tariffs. Trump said increasing these tariffs was a measure to nudge companies to hasten investment into the US and shift manufacturing there.

Among other stocks, SpiceJet and Indigo operator Interglobe Aviation ended 2% and 4% lower, respectively, extending their decline for the second straight session as airline stocks all over the world were under pressure after the crash of an Air India flight in Ahmedabad on Thursday that led to 241 deaths. On bourses across the globe, airline companies such as American Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, and Singapore Airlines fell 2-3%.

L&T Finance ended nearly 1% lower. It had fallen nearly 4% at its intraday low after global brokerage UBS downgraded the stock to 'neutral' from 'buy' citing high valuations after a sharp rally in the stock recently. The stock has risen over 8% so far this month.

Jubilant Ingrevia and Jubilant Foodworks ended higher by 16% and 2%, respectively, despite large deals on the exchanges at a discount to the respective closing prices of the stocks on Thursday. Shipping Corp. of India and Great Eastern Shipping Co. ended 10% and 2% higher, respectively, as analysts expect tanker rates to rise due to the conflict in West Asia as companies take alternative routes to avoid the region.

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 9 rose and 41 fell 

* Of the Sensex stocks, 4 rose and 26 fell

* On the NSE, 1,059 stocks rose, 1,824 fell, and 81 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 1,516 stocks rose, 2,469 fell, and 138 were unchanged

* Nifty India Defence: up 1.5%; Nifty Media: up 0.2%; Nifty PSU Bank: down 1.2%

BSE                                               NSE

Sensex: 81118.60, down 573.38 points or 0.7%      Nifty 50: 24718.60, down 169.60 points or 0.7%

End

Edited by Ashish Shirke

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