Indian Shares Extend Losses Amid Broad-based Sell-off

(RTTNews) - Indian shares tumbled on Thursday to extend steep losses from the previous session, with rising crude oil prices amid stalled U.S.-Iran peace talks, and rupee weakness linked to the RBI's partial rollback of earlier curbs on derivative trades weighing on markets.

The dollar wobbled near a 1-1/2-week high and Brent crude prices extended gains for the fourth straight session to surge toward $104 a barrel, reigniting worries about inflation, interest rates and economic growth.

Iran fired on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz and seized two of them for "maritime violations", escalating tensions in the region.

Tehran said it remains open for negotiations, but the Strait of Hormuz cannot be opened due to "the blatant violations of the ceasefire" by the U.S. and Israel.

U.S. President Trump also signaled a firm stance, saying there can be no compromise on "sanity and common sense" in dealing with Iran.

The Pentagon has reportedly informed the U.S. Congress that clearing mines allegedly positioned by the Iranian military could take up to six months.

The benchmark BSE Sensex plunged 852.49 points, or 1.09 percent, to 77,664, extending losses from the previous session.

The NSE Nifty index slumped 205.05 points, or 0.84 percent, to 24,173.05, while the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indexes dropped 0.3 percent and half a percent, respectively.

The market breadth was weak on the BSE, with 2,512 shares falling while 1,767 shares rose and 170 shares closed unchanged.

Selling was seen across the board, with Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Asian Paints, HDFC Bank, Infosys, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj FinServ and Trent tumbling 2-4 percent.

On the positive side, FMCG giant Nestle India rose over 1 percent after reporting strong quarterly earnings.

The rupee slipped past the 94 mark against the dollar in early trade today on concerns about surging crude oil prices.