India's stock market declined at the opening bell today, as uncertainty over a potential resolution to the Iran war lingered.
The 30-share S&P BSE Sensex declined as much as 1.11%, or 824.44 points, to an intraday low of 73,282.41 points, even as the wider NSE Nifty 50 fell 1.08%, or 248.95 points, to 22,719.30.
Fourteen of the 16 major sectors declined. The broader small-caps and mid-caps lost 0.5% and 1%, respectively.
The rupee, meanwhile, strengthened 8 paise against the US dollar to 92.98.
Both Nifty 50 and Sensex had opened lower on Monday but reversed course to end about 1.1% higher as the US and Iran weighed a framework for ending their conflict.
However, optimism faded soon.
Trump reiterated threats to strike Iran's power plants and civilian infrastructure unless Tehran reaches a deal by 8:00 pm Eastern Time Tuesday or 5:30 am IST on Wednesday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran said it wanted a permanent end to the conflict and not a temporary ceasefire.
Oil extended gains and hovered around $111 a barrel, as Trump intensified his rhetoric against Iran.
Elevated crude oil prices strain India's import bill and weigh on economic growth and corporate margins.
"Markets are likely to remain highly sensitive to developments in the Iran war, movements in crude oil prices and trends in foreign flows," Siddhartha Khemka, head of research of wealth management at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, said in an email to Hindustan Times.
"As Trump's deadline to Iran nears end, near-term uncertainty is likely to be elevated in the session."
The Nifty 50 and the S&P BSE Sensex have each fallen about 9% since the Iran war began on 28 February, with foreign institutional investors offloading $15.8 billion worth of shares, including a record $12.7 billion in March.
