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Indian Markets Open Flat Amid Fuel Price Hike and Mixed Global Cues

Indian equity markets opened flat-to-lower on Friday, with the BSE Sensex falling 64 points and Nifty remaining nearly flat. A nationwide hike in petrol and diesel prices by Rs 3 per litre dampened investor sentiment. Sectoral performance was mixed, with IT and Auto indices gaining while PSU Banks and Metal sectors declined. Global cues remained mixed, with US markets hitting new records but Asian markets trading in the red.

Key Points: Indian Markets Flat on Fuel Price Hike, Global Cues

  • Fuel price hike of Rs 3/litre weighs on sentiment
  • BSE Sensex falls 64 points, Nifty flat
  • IT and Auto sectors gain; PSU Banks decline
  • Global cues mixed; US stocks hit records, Asian markets negative
3 min read

Indian markets open flat-to-lower amid fuel price hike and mixed global cues

Indian equity markets opened flat-to-lower on May 15 as fuel prices rose Rs 3/litre. BSE Sensex shed 64 points, Nifty flat. IT and Auto sectors gained, while PSU Banks fell.

"The bias is cautiously bullish, but bulls first need to clear 23,790 supply, with 24,000 the larger hurdle - Rajesh Palviya"

New Delhi, May 15

Indian equity markets opened in the red on Friday as a nationwide hike in fuel prices and firming global crude oil rates weighed on investor sentiment, even as global markets remained focused on the ongoing summit between the U.S. and China.

The BSE SENSEX fell 64.22 points or 0.09 per cent to 75,334.50 in early trade, while the NSE NIFTY 50 remained nearly flat with a negative bias, shedding 1.55 points to stand at 23,688.05.

"The bias is cautiously bullish, but bulls first need to clear 23,790 supply, with 24,000 the larger hurdle. 23,500 is the immediate support to defend; a breach would expose 23,300," said Rajesh Palviya, Head of Research at Axis Direct.

This marginal decline follows a significant policy shift as the Centre hiked the prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 3 per litre each across the country. In the national capital, petrol prices rose from Rs 94.77 to Rs 97.77 per litre, while diesel prices increased from Rs 87.67 to Rs 90.67 per litre.

Similar escalations are visible in other metros, with petrol reaching Rs 108.74 (+3.29) in Kolkata, Rs 103.67 (+2.83) in Chennai and Rs 106.68 (+3.14) in Mumbai. Diesel prices in Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai now stand at Rs 93.14 (+3.11), Rs 95.13 (+3.11) and Rs 95.25 (+2.86) per litre, respectively.

On the sectoral front, performance remained mixed as the Nifty IT index led the gainers with a 1.27 per cent rise, followed by Nifty Auto at 0.93 per cent and Nifty Pharma at 0.30 per cent.

Conversely, selling pressure was evident in the Nifty PSU Bank index, which declined by 0.55 per cent. The Nifty Metal and Nifty Financial Services sectors also traded lower by 0.46 per cent and 0.25 per cent, respectively.

Commodity markets reflected ongoing volatility as Brent Crude gained 1.10 per cent to reach USD 106.89 per barrel. WTI Crude Oil similarly rose 1.22 per cent to USD 102.41 per barrel. Meanwhile, Gold prices on the CFD markets witnessed a decline of 0.79 per cent, trading at USD 4,614.28.

Global cues remained mixed overnight. U.S. stock futures were little changed on Thursday night after the Dow Jones Industrial Average reclaimed the 50,000 threshold, and the S&P 500 closed above 7,500 for the first time. Investors are also keeping an eye on the ongoing summit between the U.S. and China.

At the time of filing this report, Dow futures fell by 10 points, or 0.02 per cent. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.02 per cent, while Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.06 per cent.

"Overnight, US benchmarks struck fresh records -- the S&P 500 rose 0.77%, the Dow reclaimed 50,000 (+0.74%), and the Nasdaq added 0.88% -- powered by Cisco's 13% jump and Nvidia's H200 chip clearance. Asian cues this morning are negative; Japan and Korea are trading in the red. GIFT Nifty at 23,734.0 is trading marginally high," Palviya added.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
Mixed cues indeed. Nifty IT going up but PSU banks down - typical sector rotation. That 23,790 supply level is crucial; if bulls can't break it, we might see a correction. Personally holding cash for now. The fuel hike is a sentiment dampener for sure.
K
Kavya N
I drive to work daily and Rs 3 per litre feels like a lot. My monthly fuel bill will go up by around Rs 500-600. The market is just mirroring the pain in the economy. But good to see IT sector doing well - at least some jobs are safe.
V
Vikram M
Retail investors like me need to stay disciplined. Yes, the hike hurts, but selling in panic is not a strategy. The Nifty 23,500 support is key; if it holds, I'll add good stocks. Gold falling is interesting - maybe money flowing to equity? Let's see.
R
Rohit P
Full-on reality check! While SENSEX is near 75,000, diesel in Chennai is Rs 95/litre. The disconnect between stock market and ground reality is huge. Government should think about the common man first - excise duty cuts can give immediate relief.
J
James A
Interesting comparison with U.S. markets hitting fresh records while India opens flat. But Indian economy is different - fuel price sensitivity is much higher here. Let's see if the U.S.-China summit brings any trade clarity. Until then, cautious optimism.

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