Sensex, Nifty plunge over 2 pc as Trump’s speech gives no timeline for end to conflict

NEW DELHI: Indian equity benchmarks plunged during early trade on Thursday as investors reacted sharply to U.S. President Donald Trump’s address regarding the escalating Middle East conflict. The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 both dropped over two per cent within minutes of the opening bell, erasing gains from the previous session’s relief rally.

The BSE Sensex stood at 71,616.03 points, down 1518.29 points or 2.08 per cent at 9:16 am. Similarly, the NSE Nifty 50 stood at 22,216.90 points, reflecting a decline of 462.50 points or 2.04 per cent. The downward movement follows a period of brief recovery where the Nifty had closed 348 points higher and the Sensex had climbed 1187 points.

Market experts noted that the volatility is linked to the lack of a definitive ceasefire in the Middle East. Market and banking expert Ajay Bagga said,”Trump Speech Highlights: Nothing new, no ceasefire announcement, threats to Iran, Hormuz reopening responsibility on countries importing through it, 2-3 weeks more of kinetic action, no off ramp, no talk of ground troops action. Markets disappointed as the same messaging was rehashed after building up expectations of a very significant announcement. US futures down, Indian futures down, Oil back at $105″.

Another expert Vivek Karwa said, the market is going to take Trump speech that negatively. The immediate reaction was visible in global commodity prices, with crude oil benchmarks rising as the US President spoke. This spike in energy costs added further pressure on Indian indices.

Karwa said, “This shows that yesterday’s was just value buying and war is not over and what is continuing in the market is going to continue. What should investors do now? We are back to square one. The volatility is going to continue. While Trump was speaking, we saw Brent and WTI crude almost touching 103 and 105 (dollars). So, the crude oil is again going to go up. Until there is clarity that the war is going to get over, war is not going to react positively”.

While the indices saw a gap-up opening recently, the short-term trend remains weak. The market is now testing critical support levels that will determine the trajectory for the remainder of the week.

Shrikant Chouhan, head of equity research at Kotak Securities, said, “For traders, 22,500/72500 and 22,250/72000 would act as key support zones. As long as the market trades above these levels, the pullback move could continue upwards, with 22,900-23,000/73800-74200 acting as immediate resistance zones for bulls. Below 22250/72000, it could fall to 22100-22000/71500-71200.” (ANI)