Indian Shares Slump On Middle East Jitters

(RTTNews) - Indian shares tumbled on Friday as traders returned to their desks after a public holiday on Thursday for Ram Navami.

Mixed signals from the United States on its war against Iran kept investors on edge after Tehran rejected a 15-point U.S. ceasefire proposal and reiterated its own conditions such as halting attacks on Iranian officials, guarantees against future assaults, reparations, cessation of hostilities, and sovereignty over the Strait for ending the war.

On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would delay a threatened strike on Iran's energy infrastructure and extend his deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz until April 6, adding talks with Iran were going "very well."

Trump said Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz this week.

Additionally, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that that an insurance program aimed at boosting shipping through the waterway would begin soon.

At the same time, Trump issued a stark warning to Iran, saying the U.S. will "keep blowing them away" if a deal is not reached.

Media reports suggest that the Pentagon is reportedly considering sending up to 10,000 additional ground troops to the Middle East.

Elsewhere, Iran's local media reported that the country is mobilizing more than one million ground troops to fight against the United States.

The U.S. has deployed uncrewed drone speedboats for patrols as part of its operations against Iran, Reuters reported as Iran seeks to establish a system of approved passage for ships through the crucial waterway.

A strengthening dollar in international markets, volatile oil prices and continued foreign fund flows also weighed on investor sentiment, heading into the weekend.

The rupee plunged to a record low past 94 to the dollar today on concerns over a severe energy crisis sparked by the Middle East war.

The benchmark BSE Sensex plunged 1,690.23 points, or 2.25 percent, to 73,583.33, with selling seen across the board.

The broader NSE Nifty index plummeted 486.85 points, or 2,09 percent, to 22,819.60, marking its fifth straight weekly loss.

The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indexes slumped 2.2 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively.

The market breadth was weak on the BSE, with 3,536 shares falling while 828 shares advanced and 137 shares closed unchanged.

Among the prominent decliners, Reliance Industries and IndiGo both fell around 5 percent.

Adani Ports, Asian Paints, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj FinServ, HDFC Bank, SBI, Eternal and Bajaj Finance gave up 3-4 percent.