SENSEX, NIFTY50 extend losing streak to 5th day as crude surge, fresh US tariffs weigh

The Indian equity benchmarks fell for a fifth straight session on Friday, July 24, but came off intraday lows as crude oil prices dropped 4.25% to hit an intraday low of $96.41 per barrel. Earlier in the session, SENSEX fell as much as 917 points and NIFTY50 index touched an intraday low of 23,696 after Brent Crude futures surged above $100 per barrel in the wake of rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia.

Investor sentiment which has been subdued for quite some time tracking spike in crude oil worsened after US imposed new tariffs on its trading partners.

The SENSEX ended 332 points or 0.43% lower at 76,060 and NIFTY50 index dropped 102 points to close at 23,767.

Overnight, US military launched the 13th night of strikes Thursday against Iran, targeting key military and commercial sites as clashes continued to escalate over shipping routes. The attacks came after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, potentially widening the Iran war as international oil topped $100 a barrel.

In the last five trading sessions, the SENSEX has dropped 2.67% and NIFTY50 index has declined 2.33%.

Index heavyweights like Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Eternal, Infosys, and Sun Pharma were top drags on the SENSEX. They collectively wiped out over 250 points from the SENSEX, data from BSE showed.

10 of 15 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended lower led by the NIFTY Auto index's 1.1% fall. NIFTY Financial Services, Metal, Pharma, Realty, Healthcare and Consumer Durables indices also fell between 0.3% and 0.55%.

On the other hand, IT, media, PSU banking and media shares witnessed buying interest.

Broader markets also faced selling pressure as NIFTY Midcap 100 index declined 0.1% and NIFTY Smallcap 100 index fell 0.3%.

Among the individual shares, Swiggy fell as much as 7.2% to an intraday low of ₹242 after the company’s board approved a proposal to cap the company's aggregate foreign ownership at 49.5% on a fully diluted basis, down from the current 100% level. The move comes in order to maintain its status as an Indian-owned and controlled company (IOCC).

Dr Lal Path Labs shares rose over 4% after it posted a 28.02% year-on-year (YoY) surge in its consolidated net profit (attributable to the owners of the company) to ₹169.5 crore during the quarter under review, compared with ₹132.4 crore in the first quarter of the 2025-26 fiscal year (Q1 FY26), according to a regulatory filing.

Eternal was top loser in the NIFTY50 index, the stock fell 2.5% to close at ₹280. Bajaj Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Shriram Finance, Bajaj Auto, Tata Consumer Products, ONGC, Hindalco and Dr Reddy's Labs also fell between 1.14% and 2%.

On the flip side, HCL Tech, Cipla, Wipro, ITC, HDFC Life, Jio Financial Services, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank and Adani Enterprises were top gainers in the NIFTY50 index.

The overall market breadth was marginally positive as 1,703 shares ended higher while 1,596 closed lower on the NSE.