Stock Market Today Live Updates: Dalal Street begins in red as Sensex tumbles over 400 points, Nifty50 below

Stock market today: BSE Sensex tumbles over 500 points in opening trade Dalal Street opened sharply lower on Thursday, with Sensex tumbling over 500 points and Nifty50 slipping below the 22,700 mark. The BSE Sensex fell 546.45 points, or 0.74%, to 73,163.24, while NSE Nifty 50 declined 123.60 points, or 0.54%, to 22,687.75 in early trade..Stock market today: Gift Nifty signals weak start for domestic markets Gift Nifty was trading at 22,643.5, down 85 points or 0.37%, indicating a weak start for equity markets. The negative signal comes after benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty reversed early gains to close lower on Wednesday, extending their losses for a second consecutive session. Elevated crude oil prices, firm US bond yields and persistent macroeconomic concerns have weighed on investor sentiment. With oil prices rising again amid escalating tensions in the Gulf, market participants will be watching whether domestic equities face further selling pressure at the opening. .Stock market today: Asian markets under pressure as Gulf tensions weigh on sentiment Asian equities struggled to sustain gains in early trade on Thursday as uncertainty surrounding the Gulf and concerns over artificial intelligence offset optimism around technology earnings. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.2%, putting it on track for a fourth consecutive weekly decline. Japan’s Nikkei gave up earlier gains to trade 0.4% lower, while South Korean shares fell more than 1%. In the broader regional market snapshot provided, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 2.09%, South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.92% and Shenzhen lost 1.41%. Shanghai was down 0.69%, while Australia’s ASX 200 slipped 0.47%. The mixed-to-negative regional cues come as investors assess geopolitical risks and their potential implications for oil prices and global market sentiment. .Stock market today: Oil prices climb as Houthi attacks raise Gulf supply concerns Oil prices rose on Thursday as fresh Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia prompted the United States to order some diplomats and family members to leave its missions in the kingdom. Brent crude futures gained $1.29, or 1.2%, to $110.11 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose 97 cents, or 1%, to $98.12. The latest escalation follows attacks on targets in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, including a strike at a civilian airport in Dammam that killed one person and injured eight, and a drone attack on an oil field that killed two people. Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister said the country was prepared to defend itself, while President Masoud Pezeshkian questioned the possibility of dialogue amid US pressure. The developments have added to uncertainty over regional security and energy supplies. .Rupee rallies 53 paise to six-week high Rupee strengthened 53 paise to close at 94.38 against the US dollar on Wednesday, supported by foreign currency inflows linked to Reliance Industries’ Jio Platforms IPO and intervention by the Reserve Bank of India. The currency opened at 94.78, touched an intraday high of 94.35 and a low of 94.82 before settling at its strongest level in around six weeks. However, weak domestic equities and elevated crude oil prices continued to pose risks to the currency’s gains. Anuj Choudhary, research analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, said the rupee could maintain a positive bias amid broad dollar weakness and softer US Treasury yields. The USD-INR spot rate is expected to trade in a range of Rs 94.20 to Rs 94.80, he said. .Stock market recap: Sensex, Nifty reverse early gains to end lower Benchmark indices closed lower on Wednesday for a second consecutive session as selling in power, banking and financial stocks offset early gains. BSE Sensex declined 143.21 points, or 0.19%, to settle at 73,709.69, despite rising as much as 829.29 points to an intraday high of 74,682.19 before noon. Profit booking dragged the index more than 1,450 points from its high to a low of 73,229.45, before some late buying helped it recover. NSE Nifty50 fell 77.60 points, or 0.34%, to close at 22,811.35, after moving between 23,120.90 and 22,702.85. Midcap and smallcap indices also declined around 1.5% to 2.4%, reflecting broader risk aversion, according to Ajit Mishra, SVP–Research at Religare Broking.