MUMBAI: Fresh flare ups between Iran and Israel on Monday sank the rupee, spiked crude prices globally and pulled down most major Asian markets. As a result, sensex dipped over 900 points (1.3%) in early trades but recouped some ground to close 719 points (1%) lower at 73,524 points. Friday’s massive sell-off in the US market also weighed on investor sentiment on Dalal Street, market players said.Most Asian markets also sank deep in the red, mainly due to Friday’s sell-off on Wall Street that was led by AI-heavy stocks. Kospi in Korea closed 8% down after a circuit-breaker was triggered, Nikkei closed nearly 4% down while Shanghai Composite closed 1.7% lower.After Indian markets closed, there were reports of a ceasefire between Iran and Israel that lifted sentiment among investors globally. US markets were up in opening trades while crude oil, which was up more than 5% early in the day, gave up most of the gains and in late evening trades was up just about 1%. In domestic markets, after some recovery in mid-session, sensex dipped again to close at a more than one-month low level.
Rupee weakens 76p
Rupee weakened sharply to close at 95.71 against the dollar, down 76 paise from the previous close of 94.95. as rising crude prices, stronger US economic data, and renewed geopolitical tensions erased most of prior session’s gains, pushing it to its steepest fall in four weeks.