Stock Market: Sensex Sheds 500 Points; Nifty Around 19,500. SBI Dips 1 Per Cent, IT Leads

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, Tata Steel, NTPC, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, JSW Steel were among the early losers. On the flip side, only HCL, TCS, and Infosys emerged gainers

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Monday opened with massive cuts after a war broke out between Israel and Palestine-based militant group Hamas over the weekend. It impacted the US markets too that closed on a buoyant note on Friday. At 9.25 am, the BSE Sensex crashed 531 points to 65,464. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 was trading at 19,493, down 161 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Tata Steel, NTPC, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, JSW Steel were among the early losers. On the flip side, only HCL, TCS, and Infosys emerged gainers. IT stocks are likely to remain in focus this week, with Q2 earnings scheduled to start.

TCS' board would consider a proposal for buyback of equity shares of the company on October 11. On the same date, the IT firm will announce earnings for July-September and April-September periods of FY24.

Crude oil prices have soared around 5 per cent to $88 per barrel following the clash between Israel and Hamas. "The Israel-Hamas conflict has introduced a huge uncertainty for the markets. Nobody knows how this war is going to evolve," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said.

In the previous session on Friday, the S&P BSE Sensex jumped 364 points to end at 65,996, while the NSE Nifty50 closed at 19,654, up 108 points.

Asian markets are trading lower on Monday as Chinese and Hong Kong shares fell. European markets finished broadly higher on Friday with Germany's DAX gaining 1.06 per cent. France's CAC 40 was up 0.88 per cent and London's FTSE 100 closed 0.58 per cent higher. The US markets ended higher on Friday with S&P 500 closing with a gain of 1.18 per cent and Dow Jones Industrial Average Index up 0.87 per cent.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude witnessed a sharp rise of 3.68 per cent to $87.69 a barrel on Monday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 90.29 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee witnessed range-bound trading against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, weighed down by a negative trend in domestic equities and the strength of the American currency in the overseas market. Forex traders said the safe-haven dollar gained ground amidst heightened concerns in the Middle East.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.24 against the dollar, then touched 83.23, registering a rise of 4 paise over its previous close. On Friday, the rupee declined 2 paise to settle at 83.27 against the US dollar.