Sensex Slumps, Rupee Hits Historic Lows, Crude Oil Jumps 8%

Commodity, forex and stock markets saw immense volatility as the Russia-Ukarine war, was playing our with greater ferocity. The rupee plunged to a new historic low of 77.07, pushing FPIs to aggravate their selling in the Indian stock markets. The Sensex ended the day lower by a whopping 1500 points, while the Nifty dived 382 points in trade.

Heavyweights, saw big losses with ICICI Bank slumping 5%, while HDFC dropped 4% and HDFC Bank fell 4%. The worst performance came from Axis Bank, which slumped a massive 7%. On the other hand ONGC continued to rally on rising crude prices. The stock jumped as much as 8%.

"Indian markets opened in red tracking global cues as investors continue to monitor Ukraine crisis and fear of rising oil prices hitting economy harder weighed on already fragile sentiments. During the afternoons session markets succumbed to selling pressure and were currently nursing losses of over two percent each. Also, foreign institutional investors continued their selling spree in Indian markets as they offloaded shares worth as much as Rs 17,537 crore from the Indian markets in just three trading sessions of March," says Narendra Solanki, Head- Equity Research (Fundamental), Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers.

Meanwhile, gold prices surged 2% on the MCX, while Crude Oil jumped 8%. According to Nish Bhatt, Founder & CEO, Millwood Kane International - an Investment consulting firm, the war in Ukraine is having its effect across the countries in the world and asset class.

"The US along with European countries considering a ban on Russian oil imports has led to a spike in crude oil prices, crude prices are trading at a 14-year high. Russia is a huge oil producer and exporter. A ban on Russian oil will lead to a shortage of oil in global markets. The rise in oil prices will lead to a spike in energy prices, a rise in inflation in oil-importing countries like India.

A rise in crude oil prices disturbs the fiscal deficit, puts pressure on the currency, as the expected rupee has hit an all-time low level. The fall in currency indicates that the current crude prices may not fall in a hurry, we may witness elevated prices for some time to come.

As expected investors are flocking to gold, while MCX Gold gained nearly 2%, globally it crossed $2,000/oz in today's trade. Gold is a safe haven for investors, historically it attracts funds in times of uncertainty. The yellow metal is likely to test its all-time high levels witnessed in 2020," he stated.