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Informist, Monday, Mar. 23, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Metal cos dn as West Asia tensions escalate; Tata Steel dn 5%

 

MUMBAI--1030 IST--Shares of metal companies were down in early trade Monday as the escalation of hostilities between the US and Iran paved way for a rise in steel prices. This is likely to lead to an economic slowdown.

 

At 1026 IST, shares of Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, Vedanta, Welspun Corp., Steel Authority of India, National Aluminium Co., JSW Steel, and Adani Enterprises were down 5.5–3.4%. The Nifty Metal index was down over 4%.

 

Global steel prices continued on an upward trajectory during the last week, led by stronger momentum in India, according to Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities. The price of domestic hot rolled coil in India rose by INR 750 per tonne to INR 56,650 per tonne, the brokerage said in a research report.

 

Futures contracts of aluminium and silver on the Multi Commodity Exchange plunged nearly 1% and 6%, respectively. This was due to fears of a rise in inflation on the back of an escalation in the ongoing military hostilities in West Asia.

 

US President Donald Trump issued new warnings to Iran over the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend. He threatened to "obliterate" Iran's power plants if it did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, according to a Reuters report.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: Indices open sharply sharply lower as West Asia crisis escalates

 

MUMBAI--0941 IST--Benchmark indices opened sharply lower Monday as the US and Iran threatened to intensify military action in West Asia. The US indices had ended lower Friday and Asian markets were also down. Crude oil price ruled above $110 per barrel. Metal stocks were the major laggards in the indices. 

 

At 0939 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 22715.65, down 398.85 points or 1.7% and the BSE Sensex was at 73274.05, down 1258.91 points or 1.7%. The 50-stock index hit its lowest level since April. Oil and Natural Gas Corp. and HCL Technologies were the sole gainers in the Nifty 50, up nearly 1?ch. These stocks were the top gainers in the Nifty 200 as well. 

 

In the early minutes of trade, all the constituents of the Nifty 50 were in the red. Tata Steel, JSW Steel, and heavyweight banking stock HDFC Bank were the worst hit constituents in the index. They fell around 3?ch. Financial services companies State Bank of India, Shriram Finance, Jio Financial Services, HDFC Life Insurance Co., SBI Life Insurance Co., Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were down 2-3%. 

 

Shares of InterGlobe Aviation fell nearly 2%. The global brokerage firm Goldman Sachs has cut the target price on the stock of the company by over 13% to INR 5,200 from INR 6,000 and maintained a 'buy' recommendation. UltraTech Cement, Titan Co., Adani Enterprises, Trent, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, and Tata Consumer Products fell around 2?ch as well.      

 

All the broader market indices opened lower. They were down around 2?ch. All the sectoral indices also mirrored the losses in their benchmark peers. Nifty Metal and Nifty PSU Bank fell over 3?ch.

 

Monday, the rupee hit a record low of 93.9050 against a dollar. At 0943 IST, the domestic currency was at 93.9000, down 0.2%. The May Futures of Brent Crude hit a high of $114.35 per barrel. At 0937 IST, the May futures contract of Brent Crude was at $112.91 per barrel. The ongoing war in West Asia has continued to spark supply disruption worries among investors. Iran warned that it would target energy and water infrastructure across the Gulf if US President Donald Trump followed through with his threat to attack Tehran's electricity grid, Reuters reported.

 

Among the Nifty 200 constituents, metal companies Hindustan Zinc and its parent company Vedanta were the worst hit stocks. They were down 5?ch. Adani Total Gas fell nearly 5%. Shares of oil marketing company, Hindustan Petroleum Corp. fell over 4% amid higher crude oil prices.

 

Praj Industries was the top gainer among the Nifty 500 constituents. The stock rose over 1%. In contrast, Jaiprakash Power Ventures was the worst hit in the index. The stock fell nearly 8%.  (Adhithya Aji)

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Equity Alert: Indices may open dn on negative global cues, volatile oil price

 

MUMBAI--0835 IST--Benchmark stock indices are expected to open sharply lower Monday, tracking their Asian peers, which fell in early trade after the US and Iran threatened to intensify hostilities as the war enters its fourth week. Oil prices remained volatile in early trade, with the May futures contract of Brent Crude Oil trading slightly higher than the previous close at $112.36 per barrel at 0815 IST. 

 

Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump issued new warnings to Iran over the Strait of Hormuz. He threatened to "obliterate" Iran's power plants if it did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. This was barely a day after he talked about "winding down" the war, Reuters reported. Following this, Iran warned that it would attack US-linked infrastructure, including energy and desalination facilities in the Gulf region, if Trump carried out his threat.

 

Additionally, persistent selling of domestic equities by foreign institutional investors continues to dent the market sentiment. The volume and intensity of foreign portfolio investors' selling increased in recent days when the West Asia conflict escalated, V.K. Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said in a note Sunday. They were net sellers on all trading days in March and had net sold domestic equities worth around INR 882 billion so far in the month. 

 

At 0805 IST, the March futures contract of the Gift Nifty traded at 22799 points, up over 300 points from the Nifty 50's previous close. The Gift Nifty is indicating another round of gap-down opening for the domestic market, Vipin Kumaar, senior technical and derivatives analyst at Globe Capital Market, said. "The technical chart structure is weak and a sustained trading below 22800 (points) could drag it (Nifty 50) towards 22000-21800 spot levels in the immediate near term. On the flip side, the 23400-23600 spot zone will act as an immediate resistance on the higher side," he said. 

 

Shares of domestic pharmaceutical companies are expected to be in focus Monday after several of them announced the launch of generic versions of Semaglutide in lower prices upon expiry of the drug's patent in India on Friday. (Arya S. Biju)

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Equity Alert: Asian indices tumble amid sell-off due to US-Iran war

 

MUMBAI--0830 IST--Asian indices tumbled in early trade with South Korea's Kospi falling over 5% due to sell-off stemming from a de-risking sentiment as the US-Iran war intensified. On Monday, crude oil prices climbed past $112 per barrel despite a brief fall in 

early trade. At 0822 IST, May futures of Brent Crude oil were at 112.65 per barrel. Crude oil prices have climbed over 55% from their pre-war levels. The surge in oil prices has hit Asian equities hard as most countries in the region are heavily dependent on imports from West Asia.

 

Japan's Nikkei 225 and the broader-market Topix slid over 3%. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan also fell 3% during early trade, Reuters reported.

 

Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump threatened to attack Iran's electricity grid if the country did not re-open the key trade route of the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. In response, Iran Sunday said it would attack energy and water facilities in the Gulf if the US made good on its threat. The Strait of Hormuz, which controls 20% of global oil shipping, has remained shut since the start of the US-Iran war on Feb. 28. 

 

"The war could still go on for many weeks yet and see oil prices rise say to $150 a barrel...and the steady destruction of energy infrastructure means it will take longer to get supply back to normal," Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at fund manager AMP, told Reuters.

 

Further, analysts at HSBC highlighted Singapore jet fuel was up 175% this year to a multi-decade high, while Asian liquefied natural gas had climbed 130%, Reuters reported. Rising energy has seen markets prepare for an inflationary environment and price in rate hikes across most developed nations, according to the Reuters report.

 

Following were the levels of major Asian indices at 0813 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
CSI 300 Index	4499.51	(-)1.48
Hang Seng Index	24473.71	(-)3.18
Nikkei 225 Day	51582.23	(-)3.35
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3499.26	(-)3.05
KOSPI	5488.48	(-)5.06
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	4852.18	(-)1.95
S&P/ASX 200 Index	8387.90	(-)0.48

 

(Shruti Nair)

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Equity Alert: US indices end down Friday as hostilities in West Asia continue

 

MUMBAI--0722 IST--Major US stock indices closed in the red on Friday as tensions mount in the US-Iran war. Over the weekend, both countries traded threats as the conflict in West Asia enters its fourth week. Futures of major US indices were nearly flat on Sunday, while oil prices continued their climb with the May futures of Brent Crude oil touching $112 per barrel.

 

Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump gave Iran a 48-hour deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or risk an attack on Iranian power plants, CNBC reported. The Strait of Hormuz is a key shipping route and controls 20% of global oil shipping. The trade route has been shut since the beginning of the conflict in West Asia, leading to a surge in crude oil prices. At 0722 IST, May futures of Brent Crude oil were at 111.90 per barrel, up nearly 54% since before the US and Israel attacked Iran. In response to Trump's threats, Iran said it would attack US energy and desalination facilities among others in the Gulf, if its power infrastructure was attacked, CNBC reported.

 

"The risk-off sentiment could worsen substantially this week, with the first visible macro effects in a deluge of global PMI (purchasing managers index) data. Portfolio de-risking could continue, making cash a viable asset again," Ben Emons, chief investment officer and founder of Fed Watch Advisors, told CNBC.

 

Market participants will keep an eye on the US flash purchasing managers index, due Tuesday. They will also watch out for support levels of major indices, as the S&P 500 last week breached below its 200-day moving average for the first time since May 2025, according to CNBC.

 

Following are the closing levels of US indices Friday:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
S&P 500	6506.48	(-)1.51
NASDAQ Composite	21647.61	(-)2.01
Dow Jones Industrial Average	45577.47	(-)0.96

 

(Shruti Nair)

 

US$1 = INR 93.87

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

 

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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