MUMBAI — Indian benchmark stock indices turned lower during early morning trade on Tuesday, extending losses as rising crude oil prices and intensified geopolitical tensions between the United States and Iran dampened investor sentiment across global equity markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex started the session down 30 points at 77,336.32, before selling pressure deepened. The index dropped as much as 139.96 points to hit a low of 77,235.23. Similarly, the broader 50-share NSE Nifty fell 66.75 points, or roughly 0.28%, to trade at 24,162.50 after an initial slip of 38.80 points to 24,179.50.

Crude Oil Spikes as US-Iran Friction Escalates

A major driver behind the early-morning pullback was the surge in global energy prices triggered by renewed political friction. Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, edged up 0.35% to USD 92.49 per barrel.

"The US has launched what it calls an 'Economic D-Day' against Iran, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announcing a sweeping new sanctions campaign that marks an intensification of economic pressure on Tehran," noted Ponmudi R, CEO of wealth-tech platform Enrich Money. He added that the geopolitical escalation follows the end of a 60-day ceasefire window, with no immediate diplomatic talks scheduled between the involved parties.

Sectoral Movers and Shakers

Inside the 30-share Sensex basket, technology and heavy industry stocks led the downward momentum:

  • Top Laggards: HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, NTPC, Power Grid, and Bajaj Finance faced heavy selling in initial trades.

  • Top Winners: Countering the negative sentiment, gains in Trent, Adani Ports, ICICI Bank, and Bharat Electronics helped cushion the benchmark from deeper losses.

Global Trends & Expiry Pressure

The weakness on Dalal Street mirrored mixed performance across major Asian equity desks. South Korea’s Kospi, China's Shanghai Composite, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index traded in negative territory during morning trade, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 bucked the trend to quote marginally higher. Wall Street had closed predominantly lower on Monday.

Market analysts cautioned that local indices could experience choppy trading sessions through the week due to upcoming monthly derivatives expiry.

"Indian markets are expected to witness heightened volatility as weakness across global equities amid renewed escalation in the US-Iran standoff, coupled with monthly expiry-related rollovers and positioning, could lead to sharper-than-usual price swings, particularly during the final hour of trading," said Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth.

FII Activity & Previous Session Wrap

Despite the cautious mood on Tuesday morning, institutional cash flows offered a mild silver lining. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned net buyers on Monday, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,181.66 crore, according to official exchange data.

In the previous trading session on Monday, the BSE Sensex closed 171.72 points (0.22%) lower at 77,369.11, while the NSE Nifty ended down 32.95 points (0.14%) at 24,219.05.