Sensex crashes over 1,300 points as Middle East tensions spike crude oil prices

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled in early trade on Friday in tandem with weak Asian markets amid a sharp spike in Brent crude oil prices after Israel attacked Iran's capital.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 1,337.39 points or 1.63 per cent to 80,354.59 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 415.2 points or 1.66 per cent to 24,473.

All the 30-Sensex firms were trading lower during the early trade. Kotak Mahindra Bank, Power Grid, Adani Ports, Tata Motors, UltraTech Cement and Asian Paints were the major laggards.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 9.33 per cent to USD 75.83 a barrel.

"Close on the heels of the Ahmedabad air tragedy has come the news of Israel’s attack on Iran. The economic consequences of this Israeli strike can be profound if the attack and counter attack by Iran lingers long. Brent crude prices have flared up by around 12% to $78. The impact on market will depend on how long the conflict lingers. In the near-term the market will be in a risk-off mode," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng were trading lower.

US markets ended in the positive territory on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,831.42 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

"The Nifty fell over a per cent yesterday, as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East showed signs of erupting. As of this morning, Israel has launched pre-emptive strikes on Iran and that's led to a broad-based risk-off across markets," Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities, said.

Meanwhile, a London-bound Air India plane carrying 242 passengers and crew crashed in Ahmedabad minutes after taking off from the airport on Thursday afternoon.

Air India has confirmed the death of 241 people in the plane crash. One passenger miraculously escaped.

On Thursday, the 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 823.16 points or 1 per cent to settle at 81,691.98. The Nifty tumbled 253.20 points or 1.01 per cent to 24,888.20.