Stock Markets End Lower as Escalating US-Iran Tensions, Foreign Fund Outflows Dent Sentiment

• The Sensex fell 150.63 points to 73,832.55 after swinging 875.59 points during the session.

• The Nifty closed 53.35 points lower at 23,161.60 after a volatile day.

• Infosys, HCL Tech, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance, Eternal and Bharat Electronics were among the biggest laggards.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Thursday, as investors remained cautious amid rising tensions between the US and Iran.

Unabated foreign fund outflows and a spike in US inflation also led to the muted trading in the markets, according to analysts.

In a volatile trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 150.63 points, or 0.20%, to settle at 73,832.55. During the day, the benchmark hit a high of 74,394.34 and a low of 73,518.75, gyrating 875.59 points.

The 50-share NSE Nifty edged lower by 53.35 points, or 0.23%, to end at 23,161.60. Intraday, the benchmark index reached a high of 23,327.45 and a low of 23,072.05.

Among the Sensex firms, Infosys, HCL Tech, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finance, Eternal and Bharat Electronics were the biggest laggards.

Mahindra & Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Sun Pharma were among the winners.

"Indian equities witnessed another highly volatile session today, with benchmark indices staging a strong recovery from opening losses before surrendering gains in the second half of the day," Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder, Livelong Wealth, said.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded 1% lower at $92.16 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded Indian equities worth ₹2,124.98 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 ended marginally higher, while Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled lower. Markets in Europe were trading higher.

US markets ended significantly lower on Wednesday.

"IT stocks lagged amid concerns that stronger US inflation could delay interest rate cuts and keep global financial conditions tight," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

On Wednesday, the Sensex trimmed most of its intraday gains during the fag-end of trading and settled 64.42 points, or 0.09%, higher at 73,983.18. The Nifty, however, dipped 27.15 points, or 0.12%, to end at 23,214.95.