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Sensex, Nifty trade flat in early deals
Jun-16-2025

Indian equity benchmarks made a cautious start on Monday following mixed cues from Asian counterparts as well as the broadly negative cues from Wall Street on Friday, amid the escalation in geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. The Israel-Iran conflict continued to escalate, with Israeli military claiming its attack on Iran eliminated high-value targets, and Iranian authorities confirming damage to four critical buildings at the Isfahan uranium conversion facility. Sensex and Nifty are trading flat in early deals. Some support came as the RBI said that India's forex reserves increased by $5.17 billion to $696.65 billion for the week ended June 6. Investors are looking for the WPI data to  be out later in the day for more directional cues.

However, upside remained capped as traders were concerned after Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President S C Ralhan said that the Iran-Israel war will further hurt global trade. The situation was gradually improving but now again the trade will be impacted. India's exports to Europe and countries like Russia may get hurt. Freight rates and insurance are expected to increase. In stock specific development, Arkade Developers gained as it forayed into Maharashtra's Thane metro area with 6.28-acre project with an estimated gross development value of Rs 2,000 crore.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81152.71, up by 34.11 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 81012.31 and 81409.06. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.71%, while Small cap index was down by 1.32%.

The sole gaining sectoral index on the BSE was TECK up by 0.13%, while Auto down by 1.00%, Industrials down by 0.86%, Consumer Discretionary down by 0.78%, PSU down by 0.75% and Realty down by 0.74% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 0.81%, Ultratech Cement up by 0.76%, Larsen & Toubro up by 0.71%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.61% and HDFC Bank up by 0.51%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 90.00%, Tata Motors down by 4.94%, Tata Steel down by 0.69%, SBI down by 0.58% and Axis Bank down by 0.57% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, With the Israel-Iran conflict intensifying, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) has said that the government must urgently review energy risk scenarios, diversify crude sourcing, and ensure strategic reserves are sufficient. It said due to the war, India is increasingly at risk of collateral economic fallout, with energy security, trade routes, and key commercial interests facing growing uncertainty. GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said ‘The escalating hostilities and rising regional tensions are posing direct threats to India's strategic and economic links with West Asia, and added that India has significant trade exposure to both warring nations. In 2024-25, India exported goods worth $1.24 billion to Iran and imported $441.9 million in return. Trade with Israel was even more substantial, with $2.15 billion in exports and $1.61 billion in imports.

Srivastava said ‘But more critical than these bilateral flows is India's reliance on the region for energy: nearly two-thirds of its crude oil and half of its LNG imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has now threatened to close’. This narrow waterway, only 21 miles wide at its narrowest point, handles nearly a fifth of global oil trade and is indispensable to India, which depends on imports for over 80 per cent of its energy needs. He said that any closure or military disruption in the Strait of Hormuz would sharply increase oil prices, shipping costs, and insurance premiums, triggering inflation, pressuring the rupee, and complicating India's fiscal management. 

He said the risks became even more immediate on June 15, when Iran fired missiles at Israel's Haifa port -- a facility handling over 30 per cent of Israeli imports and 70 per cent owned by India's Adani Ports. He said initial reports indicate damage to port infrastructure and nearby refineries, raising fears of disrupted logistics and a spillover of conflict into Indian commercial operations. Meanwhile, Israel's June 14-15 strike on Houthi military leadership in Yemen has heightened tensions in the Red Sea region, where Houthi forces have already attacked commercial shipping. He noted ‘For India, this poses another serious risk. Nearly 30 per cent of India's westbound exports to Europe, North Africa, and the US East Coast travel through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, now vulnerable to further disruption’.

He said that if shipping must be rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope, transit times could rise by up to two weeks, and costs could soar. He added this would directly impact Indian exports of engineering goods, textiles, and chemicals, while also raising input costs for key imports. He said ‘India, though not a party to the conflict, cannot afford complacency. The government must urgently review energy risk scenarios, diversify crude sourcing, and ensure strategic reserves are sufficient’.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24725.40, up by 6.80 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 24703.60 and 24817.65. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Cipla up by 1.71%, ONGC up by 0.77%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.76%, Ultratech Cement up by 0.76% and Power Grid up by 0.70%. On the flip side, Tata Motors down by 5.23%, JIO Financial Services down by 1.80%, Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 1.25%, Coal India down by 0.95% and Adani Enterprises down by 0.80% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Nikkei 225 surged 474.08 points or 1.25% to 38,308.33, KOSPI increased 26.71 points or 0.92% to 2,921.33, Jakarta Composite gained 22.23 points or 0.31% to 7,188.30 and Shanghai Composite was up by 1.78 points or 0.05% to 3,378.78. On the other hand, Hang Seng declined 28.36 points or 0.12% to 23,864.20, Taiwan Weighted lost 19.23 points or 0.09% to 22,053.72 and Straits Times was down by 12.08 points or 0.31% to 3,899.34.
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