Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 30 (ANI): Dark clouds of selling continued to hover over Dalal Street on Monday morning as Indian benchmark indices opened sharply lower amid rising geopolitical tensions and surging crude oil prices.

The Nifty 50 opened at 22,549.65, declining by 269.95 points or (-1.18 per cent), while the BSE Sensex slipped to 72,603.07, falling by 980.15 points or -1.33 per cent in early trade.

The persistent weakness in the markets comes against the backdrop of escalating conflict in West Asia, which has disrupted global trade routes and energy supply chains. Recent attacks on key energy infrastructure in the region have further dented investor confidence and raised concerns over inflation and economic stability.

Market experts highlighted that the situation is evolving into a broader global financial risk.

Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market Expert, told ANI, 'There are three brewing crises in the financial world right now. We don't understand the scale or interaction of these. It could be '2007 leading to a full-blown 2008' along with a Dot Com Crash 2.0 thrown in for good measure.'

He added that massive private credit exposure, fund redemption pressures and the ongoing energy disruption are creating an unprecedented situation, while bond markets are struggling to price in risks amid high debt levels, rising inflation and weakening growth.

Selling pressure was visible across broader markets as well. The Nifty 100 declined by more than 1 per cent, Nifty Midcap 100 fell by 1.32 per cent, and Nifty Smallcap 100 dropped by 1.18 per cent, indicating widespread weakness.

Sectoral indices also traded in the red, with Nifty Auto falling by 1.57 per cent, Nifty IT declining by 1.07 per cent, Nifty Media down by 1.48 per cent, and Nifty Oil and Gas slipping by 1 per cent. The Consumer Durable index also declined by 1.46 per cent.

Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities, noted, 'We are of the view that the short-term market texture is extremely volatile and is likely to remain so in the near future.'

Chauhan added, 'For traders, 23,000/74500 would act as an immediate resistance zone. As long as the market remains below this level, weak sentiment is likely to continue. On the downside, the market could retest levels of 22,650-22,500/73300-73000. Further downside may also continue, potentially dragging the market to 22,200-22000/72100-71500. Conversely, above 23,000/74500, a pullback could continue up to 23,400-23,500/75700-76000.'

The other Asian markets are also trading in negative territory, with Japan's Nikkei 225 index falling by approximately 5 per cent to the 50,950 level, while South Korea's KOSPI declined by around 4 per cent to the 5,240 level. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index dropped 1.69 per cent to 24,533, Taiwan's Weighted index declined 1.86 per cent to 32,488, and Singapore's Straits Times index slipped 0.26 per cent to 4,885.

Meanwhile, Brent crude prices surged sharply to USD 115 per barrel, intensifying concerns over inflationary pressures and global economic slowdown.

In the commodities segment, gold prices showed some recovery with 24 karat gold trading at Rs 1,43,772 per 10 grams. However, silver prices remained under pressure at Rs 2,27,094 per kg.

In the US markets on Friday, major indices ended lower. The Dow Jones index declined by 1.73 per cent to close at 45,166, while the S&P 500 index fell by 1.67 per cent to 6,368. The Nasdaq index dropped more than 2 per cent to close at 20,948. (ANI)