Indian Markets Close Higher Despite Brent Crude Crossing $115

The Nifty 50 settled at 24,177.65 points, up 0.8 per cent, while the BSE Sensex closed 609.45 points higher at 77,496.36 points. Gains in the Nifty were led by ITC, Reliance Industries and Tech Mahindra, which rose 3-4 per cent each. On the downside, Indigo, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and NTPC were among the worst hit, falling around 3 per cent each.

Among the sectoral indices, Nifty Auto, Nifty FMCG, and Nifty Realty were the biggest gainers, rising arounfd per cent each.

The positive close came even as Asian markets showed a mixed trend despite losses on Wall Street. Markets in Japan were closed for a holiday, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.8 per cent to 6,690.90 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.5 per cent to 26,050.90. China's Shanghai Composite traded 0.7 per cent higher at 4,107.51. In contrast, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.3 per cent to 8,687.00 and Taiwan's Taiex lost 0.6 per cent.

Oil prices remained elevated as traders weighed the impact of the UAE's exit from OPEC, effective Friday. The move has been closely watched since OPEC accounts for roughly 40 per cent of global oil output, and the UAE is one of its largest producers. The country has pushed back against production quotas in recent years in a bid to sell more oil globally. Brent was trading around $70 per barrel before the Wes Asia conflict began in late February.

Spot premiums for physical crude have, however, slipped from record highs reached earlier in the conflict as refiners draw on inventories and cut back processing to cope with lost Middle East supply, traders and analysts said.

Overnight in the US, equities ended lower as rising oil prices and concerns around OpenAI weighed on sentiment. The S&P 500 fell 0.49 per cent to 7,138.80, the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.9 per cent to 24,663.80, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 25.86 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 49,141.93. Traders are also awaiting quarterly earnings from four of the "Magnificent Seven" stocks and the conclusion of what could be Jerome Powell's final policy meeting as Federal Reserve chair.

- ANI