Equity Alert
Aviation shrs nosedive as cos cancel flights to West Asia
This story was originally published at 10:32 IST on 2 March 2026
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Equity Alert: Aviation shrs nosedive as cos cancel flights to West Asia
MUMBAI--1000 IST--Shares of airline operators fell in early trade after several domestic airlines extended flight cancellations to and from West Asia amid airspace disruption in the region since the US and Israel's attack on Iran. Many of these aviation players had already suspended operations till Sunday after the US and Israel carried out a series of military operations against Iran, followed by Tehran's retaliation over the weekend.
Shares of InterGlobe Aviation, which operates under the brand name IndiGo, were down almost 4%. "In view of the prevailing situation, the temporary suspension of select international flights that use Middle East airspace, has been extended until 2nd March 2026, 2359 hrs IST," the operator said in a post on social media platform X. The company is extending waivers for travel to and from West Asia, along with other impacted international sectors until Saturday for bookings made on or before Saturday last week. Customers may opt for a full refund or reschedule at no additional cost, the airline said.
Shares of SpicJet were down nearly 4% on the BSE after the company also cancelled all outbound and inbound flights from West Asia till Tuesday. "Passengers are advised to check their flight status before proceeding to the airport," the airline said in an advisory on X. (Eshitva Prakash)
Equity Alert: Indices open sharply lower as US attack on Iran hits sentiment
MUMBAI--0952 IST--Indian equity indices opened sharply lower following the esclation of conflict in West Asia after the US and Israel launched joint military strikes on Iran over the weekend. Asian markets opened lower and oil prices have spiked on the back of the continuous missile attacks in West Asia. The Nifty 50 was weighed down by a fall in shares of Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, and ICICI Bank. L&T fell nearly 4%. Meanwhile, the heavyweight stocks, Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank, fell around 1?ch.
At 0946 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 24962.10 points, down 216.55 points or 0.9%, and the BSE Sensex was at 80546.87 points, down 740.32 points or 0.9%.
Iran on Sunday shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime route through which a fifth of global crude oil passes. This has led to tensions over oil supply, especially for India, which is a major oil importer.
Defence company Bharat Electronics rose over 2% to be the top gainer in the Nifty 50 index. Metal stocks of Tata Steel and Hindalco Industries rose nearly 2% and 1%, respectively. HDFC Life Insurance Co., JSE Steel, Bharti Airtel, and Tech Mahindra rose 0.2-0.4%. On the other hand, InterGlobe Aviation was the worst-hit stock. The IndiGo operator fell nearly 5?ter the company suspended their flights to and from West Asia on the back of the ongoing attacks.
Larsen & Toubro, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, and Asian Paints fell 3-4% and were the other worst-hit stocks. Shares of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, which operates Hafia Port in Israel, fell over 3% amid persisting tensions of a military action. Asian Paints fell as the company depends largely on crude oil as a raw material. Crude oil prices surged following the military outbreak in West Asia.
All financial services stocks fell sharply. Bajaj Finance, Jio Financial Services, Shriram Finance, Bajaj Finserv, and SBI LIfe Insurane Co. fell 1-2%. Automakers Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Bajaj Auto, and Eicher Motors fell 1-2%.
Barring Nifty Metal and Nifty India Defence, all other sectoral indices fell. Nifty Realty was the underperforming index, down 2%. Nifty Realty was weighed down by the stock of Signatureglobal (India). The stock fell nearly 2%. Meanwhile, Nifty India Defence rose nearly 2%. Barring the stock of Cyient DLM, all other constituents traded higher. Bharat Dynamics was the top gainer in the index. The stock rose nearly 4%.
In the Nifty 200 index, Bharat Dynamics was the top gaining stock. Shares of KEI Industries rose over 3% as well. Hindustan Zinc was up over 2%. In contrast, Indian Oil Corp. was the worst-hit stock in the index. The stock of the oil refining company fell 4%. IRB Infrastructure Developers and Suzlon Energy were down around 2?ch as well.
In the Nifty 500 index, Tejas Networks was the top gainer, rising nearly 10%. Shares of Railtel Corp. was the worst hit, down over 4%. (Adhithya Aji)
Equity Alert: Mkts in Asia fall amid US-Iran war; aviation stocks hit hard
MUMBAI--0800 IST--All major benchmark indices in Asia tumbled in early trade as geopolitical tensions escalated following the US and Israeli military strikes on Iran over the weekend. The attacks resulted in the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and raised concerns over crude oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. In early trading, aviation-related stocks fell due to disruption in airspace over West Asia, while energy stocks gained due to higher crude oil prices. Equity markets in South Korea were closed for a public holiday.
Earlier in the session, the May contract of Brent crude oil surged over 13.5% to an over one-year high on fears of disruption at the Strait of Hormuz, which accounts for about a fifth of the world's seaborne oil trade flows, according to data from Reuters. US President Donald Trump said Sunday that combat operations in Iran will continue after three US military personnel were killed in a retaliatory strike by Iran, various media sources said. At 0750 IST, the contract was up about 5% at $76.25 per dollar.
"The most immediate and tangible development affecting oil markets is the effective halt of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, preventing 15 million barrels per day of crude oil from reaching markets," Reuters quoted Jorge Leon, head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, as saying.
In Asian markets, airline stocks led the losses on Monday as West AsiA airspace disruptions and airport closures unsettled travel markets, while higher oil prices lifted energy shares amid the escalating conflict in Iran, CNBC reported. Shares of Singapore Airlines were down more than 6%. Japan's ANA and JAL dropped over 4?ch, and Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific were down 4%.
Energy stocks such as Woodside Energy in Australia, Inpex in Japan, and China National Offshore Oil Corp. in Hong Kong rose 4-5%. Select defence companies in Japan also traded higher, per media reports.
Following are the levels of key Asian indices at 0759 IST:
| Index | Level | Change in % |
| CSI 300 Index | 4678.95 | (-)0.67 |
| Hang Seng Index | 25948.28 | (-)2.56 |
| Nikkei 225 Day | 57916.89 | (-)1.59 |
| TOPIX FIRST SECTION | 3871.86 | (-)1.70 |
| KOSPI | 6244.13 | (-)1.00 |
| FTSE Singapore Strait Times | 4887.81 | (-)2.15 |
| S&P/ASX 200 Index | 9152.60 | (-)0.50 |
(Eshitva Prakash)
Equity Alert: Nifty 50 may drop to 25000 pts as oil spikes on US-Iran war
MUMBAI--0750 IST--Benchmark equity indices are expected to open sharply lower Monday after oil prices spiked as US-Iran tensions turned into a full-fledged war over the weekend. Other Asian markets already witnessed a fall at open, with indices in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore down 1-3%. Futures contracts of Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.6%, indicating a fall in the US market when trading begins later in the West.
The US and Israel attacked Iran over the weekend killing Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei. Iran retaliated on Sunday and launched missiles against Israel and other Gulf countries, killing three US soldiers in Kuwait, reported the New York Times. Iran also shut the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, which is used in transporting a fifth of global crude oil flows. Brent crude oil futures jumped nearly 14% at open Monday, crossing $82 per barrel. Prices have since come off highs, but it was still up over 4% at $76 per barrel, at 0746 IST.
Technical analysts predict the Nifty 50 is likely to fall to 25000-25100 points initially when the market opens for trading and may even fall to 24800 points till the end of day if selling persists. However, GIFT Nifty contracts are not pointing towards a fall in the Nifty 50. The March contracts of the Nifty 50, traded on the NSE International Exchange, fell below 25000 points at open but quickly came off lows. At 0734 IST, the contracts were at 25182 points, indicating a a flat opening.
While the GIFT Nifty contracts are indicating a muted reaction by markets, the index could fall if the war lasts for more than a week as a sustained rise in crude oil price could hit earnings, analysts said. "Expect a significant correction - Nifty, in our view, could again test 24500-25000 levels, and even go lower if the conflict lasts more than 1-2 weeks. If the hostilities end within a week or so, the market should revive just as quickly," Seshadri Sen, head of research and strategist, said in a strategy report Monday.
Shares of oil-sensitive sectors such as oil marketing companies, paints, tyres, aviation, and chemicals are likely to fall, while oil exploration companies may rise. Defence companies may also rise but JM Financial Insitutional Equities said the rise might be just sentimental. (Anshul Choudhary)
Equity Alert: US stock futures drop after attack on Iran; crude prices surge
MUMBAI--0730 IST--Futures contracts of US benchmark indices slumped after the US, in co-ordination with Israel, conducted joint military operations against Iran over the weekend. This action resulted in the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reports confirmed. These operations have raised concerns over the operability of the Hormuz Strait, a major crude oil chokepoint, resulting in a surge in crude oil prices.
At 0721 IST, the March contract of the E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures was down 0.5% at 24884 points. The E-Mini Dow Future contract was down 0.6% at 48712 points.
"The tail risk of a sustained conflict is higher than in 2024 or 2025, though we don't see this war escalating to a point where it drastically changes the US outlook," CNBC quoted Ajay Rajadhyaksha from Barclays as saying. But in the first half of this week, "it is too early to buy any dip, especially with investors used to a pattern of quick de-escalation," he said.
Earlier on Monday, the May futures contract of Brent crude oil rose to an over one-year high of $82.37 per barrel. At 0721 IST, the contracts were up 5% at $76.19 per barrel. The oil market's trajectory depends on whether the fighting disrupts shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and a sustained interruption there could reverberate through global energy markets and reignite inflation pressures, CNBC said.
On Friday, benchmark indices in the US had closed lower, dragged down by financial services and technology stocks. The sell-off was driven by uncertainty over costs and disruption related to artificial intelligence, revived tariff uncertainties, and simmering geopolitical tensions, Reuters reported.
On the macroeconomic front, a hotter-than-expected Producer Price Index reading cut expectations of the US Federal Reserve cutting its key interest rate in the near term. Headline producer inflation came in at 2.9%, as opposed to 2.6% expected by the Street. Markets are currently pricing in a 95.6% probability that the central bank will leave the US Fed funds target rate in the 3.50-3.75% range at its upcoming monetary policy meeting in March, according to CME's FedWatch tool.
Following are the closing levels of US indices Friday:
| Index | Level | Change in % |
| S&P 500 | 6878.88 | (-)0.43 |
| NASDAQ Composite | 22668.21 | (-)0.92 |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 48977.92 | (-)1.05 |
(Eshitva Prakash)
US$1 = INR 91.40
IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT
Edited by Tanima Banerjee
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