By Bharath Rajeswaran
BENGALURU (Reuters) -Indian shares declined on Monday as investors turned risk-averse after Iran’s retaliatory attack on Israel over the weekend spurred fears of a wider regional conflict.
The NSE Nifty 50 fell 1.1% to 22,272.50, while the S&P BSE Sensex lost 1.14% to 73,399.78, at close.
“The escalation in the Iran-Israel conflict is a serious development and Indian markets will be under pressure over the next few sessions,” said Samir Bahl, chief executive of investment banking at Anand Rathi Advisors.
The worries in the Middle East have forced investors to look for safer places for their money, according to three analysts.
Both benchmarks dropped about 1% each for two sessions in a row.
“Hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data last week and rising geopolitical worries have kept global markets on tenterhooks,” said Devarsh Vakil, deputy head of retail research at HDFC Securities.
Other Asian peers also traded lower, with the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index shedding 0.9%.
Forty-four of the Nifty 50 stocks and twelve of the 13 major sectors logged losses.
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation jumped 5.33% after Jefferies initiated coverage of the Indian oil explorer and set a Street-high price target.
Aluminium producer Hindalco Industries gained 2.35%, tracking the rise in global aluminium prices after the U.S. and UK imposed restrictions on the trading of new Russian commodities in exchanges. [MET/L]
ONGC and Hindalco were the top two Nifty 50 gainers.
Battery maker Exide Industries climbed 2.67% to a record high after Morgan Stanley raised the price target to a Street-high of 485 rupees, citing gains from the government’s push for making electric vehicles in India.
Small- and mid-caps lost 1.73% and 1.57%, respectively, after outperforming the benchmarks so far in April.
The two indexes were the “major casualties” due to their rich valuation and expectation of moderation in March quarter earnings growth, said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich, Varun H K, Sonia Cheema, and Janane Venkatraman)
