Sensex down 1,353 pts, Nifty at 24,028 as crude prices surge

The Indian share market ended lower for the second consecutive session on Monday amid rising geopolitical tensions, which pushed biggest rise in crude oil prices since 2020. Besides weak global markets and rupee hitting new low also weighed on investor sentiment. Meanwhile, buying at lower levels brought down some of the intraday losses as crude recovered.At close, the Sensex was down 1,352.74 points or 1.71 percent at 77,566.16, and the Nifty was down 422.40 points or 1.73 percent at 24,028.05. About 941 shares advanced, 3224 shares declined, and 166 shares unchanged.
Wipro, Sun Pharma, Apollo Hospital, Reliance Industries, Infosys were the top gainers on the Nifty, while losers included Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Eicher Motors, Bajaj Auto, UltraTech Cement, Maruti Suzuki.On the sectoral front,all the sectoral indices ended in the red with Auto, Capital Goods, Consumer Durables, Metal, PSU Bank, Oil & Gas and Private Bank down 2-4%.Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices shed 2 each.
Rupee Close:
On 9 Mar'26, the Indian rupee crashed to its all-time closing low of 92.35  against the U.S. dollar on Monday , losing 53 paise during the session, as global crude oil prices saw a sharp spike, and the greenback strengthened amid worsening conflict in West Asia.Withdrawal of foreign funds amid intense selling in domestic equity markets further pressured the rupee, forex traders said.
Trading Guide:
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments statedselling intensified as the Middle East conflict entered its second week with no signs of de-escalation. The sustained rise in crude prices is likely to complicate the RBI’s policy outlook by keeping inflation elevated and posing risks to growth.Additional concerns in the U.S. about potential caps on redemptions in specific funds also contributed to the sell-off. Despite this, the current phase may offer opportunities for long-term investors. Selective value buying in pharma and IT helped limit deeper losses and indicated a defensive stance amid a weakening rupee in the short term.
Market experts recommended to buy five shares on Monday-Aditya Birla Sun Life Amc, Aster DM Healthcare, CG Power and Industrial Solutions, Astral, and Krishna Institute Of Medical Sciencs.

(Business Correspondent)