Indian Markets Open Lower As Elevated Oil Prices, Geopolitical Risks Keep Investors Cautious

Indian equity markets opened on a weak note on Friday, extending their weekly losses as elevated crude oil prices and persistent geopolitical tensions in West Asia outweighed optimism over easing expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate hike.

At 9:17 a.m., the BSE Sensex was down 279.57 points, or 0.36%, at 77,800.39, while the Nifty 50 declined 69.65 points, or 0.29%, to 24,326.20.

The benchmark indices have remained under pressure this week, with the Nifty declining around 0.7% and the Sensex shedding about 0.5%, as geopolitical concerns offset strong corporate earnings and expectations of stable US interest rates.

Crude, West Asia Tensions Remain Key Monitorables

Investor sentiment remained cautious after the US indicated it could maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely as ceasefire talks remained stalled, keeping uncertainty around energy supplies elevated.

Brent crude futures for October delivery traded at $87.22 a barrel, up 0.17%, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for September rose 0.23% to $81.44.

On the domestic commodity market, August crude futures on the MCX traded at ₹7,768 per barrel, down 0.68%, while September futures slipped 0.66% to ₹7,713.

Among Nifty 50 stocks, Apollo Hospitals, Bajaj Auto, Adani Ports and Eternal were the early gainers.

On the downside, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (TMPV) fell over 4%, followed by Max Healthcare, Hindalco, Jio Financial Services and Tata Steel.

Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers, offloading ₹511 crore worth of Indian equities on Thursday.

Range-bound Market Likely To Continue

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said the market is likely to remain range-bound in the near term, with the Nifty consolidating between 23,800 and 24,400 in the absence of a decisive trigger.

He said hopes of a breakout were derailed after Brent crude briefly surged above $91 following the collapse of expectations for a US-Iran agreement. While Brent has since cooled below $87, providing some relief, a sustained trend in foreign institutional investor flows is yet to emerge.

Vijayakumar added that market activity is likely to remain concentrated in the mid- and small-cap segments, while select private sector banks continue to offer attractive long-term investment opportunities.