Indian stocks reverse morning gains and fall for third session as oil and tech selloff weigh

what happened

According to Moody's, Indian benchmarks reversed sharply on Friday, October 23. The Sensex climbed to an intraday high of 73,766.51 before dropping to a low of 72,487.47, while the Nifty 50 fell from 22,787.25 to 22,407.05. The indices had already lost about 2% over the previous three sessions, and this was their fourth straight losing day.

Crude oil was the main drag. Brent traded near 113.73 dollars per barrel, close to its highest level since May, amid the Iran conflict and Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. Small- and mid-cap shares fell as much as 3%, and Swiggy plunged 13%. Most Asian markets declined, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 2.6% overnight on renewed concerns about artificial intelligence-linked stocks.

why it matters

For India, higher energy import costs raise pressure on inflation, the rupee and corporate margins, and they complicate the interest rate outlook. Strategists cited lower US Treasury yields, rupee strength and liquidity returning after IPO allotments as possible offsets.

market impact

Indian equities and the rupee: costlier oil raises import costs and pressures inflation and corporate margins

tags

instruments