The Indian equity benchmark indices traded in red on Wednesday, July 8, as investors turned cautious after geopolitical tensions resurfaced in West Asia, sending crude oil prices higher. The S&P BSE SENSEX fell as much as 0.87% to hit an intraday low of 77,498.70, while the NSE's NIFTY50 touched a day's low of 24,189.20. According to reports, except for realty, metal and consumer durables, all the other sectoral indices were trading lower, while the NIFTY Midcap 100 and NIFTY Smallcap 100 gauges were down 0.12% and 0.18%, respectively. In the afternoon session, 3,233 stocks traded on the NSE, with 1,353 advancing and 1,785 declining, indicating that market breadth was in favour of declines.
Several momentum stocks experienced significant declines on July 7, with Usha Financial Services dropping nearly 5% to ₹32.00, trading below all major moving averages including its 30-day SMA of ₹33.60, 50-day SMA of ₹33.20, 150-day SMA of ₹34.83, and 200-day SMA of ₹37.36. Sterlite Technologies fell over 4.5% to ₹558.00, remaining below its 30-day SMA of ₹585.07 but trading above its 50-day SMA of ₹493.02, 150-day SMA of ₹260.23, and 200-day SMA of ₹224.65. Kalyan Jewellers India dropped 3.61% to ₹353.40, slipping below all major moving averages including its 30-day SMA of ₹366.64, 50-day SMA of ₹374.87, 150-day SMA of ₹414.30, and 200-day SMA of ₹434.37.
Despite the broader market weakness, 70 stocks hit their 52-week highs on Wednesday, with DB (International) Stock Brokers leading at 14.57% gain to ₹48.40, followed by SG Mart at 11.51% to ₹686 and Balaji Amines at 10% to ₹2,305.40. Other notable performers included Saraswati Commercial India at 10% to ₹13,644, Ind-Swift Laboratories at 9.13% to ₹238, and Thangamayil Jewellery at 7.13% to ₹6,949. Among the major stocks achieving 52-week highs were Aequs at 7.076% to ₹271, Nykaa parent firm FSN E-Commerce Ventures, Zydus Lifesciences, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, and Lupin. Additionally, 66 stocks hit their upper circuit limits, and 59 touched their lower circuit bands during the trading session.
The market decline was primarily attributed to crude oil prices surging more than 3% intraday to over $76 per barrel after the United States carried out targeted retaliation air strikes on 80 locations in Iran in response to the West Asian country allegedly violating the ceasefire agreement. The rising demand for the US dollar in the market due to the heightened geopolitical sentiment has, in turn, weighed down on gold prices as traders are less likely to purchase gold at higher dollar prices to avoid getting lower quantities of the precious metal. This geopolitical uncertainty has created a risk-off sentiment in the market, with investors adopting a cautious approach amid the escalating tensions in the West Asian region.
