Indian benchmark equity indices opened in the red on Tuesday, July 14, as weak global cues and rising crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiment. The BSE Sensex was trading around 300 points lower at 77,300, while the NSE Nifty 50 declined by more than 100 points to trade near 24,100 during early trade.

Selling pressure was most visible in auto and banking stocks, which emerged as the biggest laggards in the opening session. Market participants remained cautious amid concerns over higher energy prices and mixed global market trends.

Crude Oil Climbs to Around $85

Global crude oil prices rose nearly 2%, with Brent crude moving close to $85 per barrel. The increase followed comments by US President Donald Trump, who said the agreement with Iran had effectively ended, raising fresh concerns over oil supply and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Higher crude prices are generally viewed as negative for India, as they can increase import costs, widen the trade deficit and add to inflationary pressures.

Two IPOs Open for Subscription

The primary market remained active as SBI Funds Management and Alpine Texworld opened their initial public offerings (IPOs) for subscription today.

SBI Funds Management aims to raise approximately ₹9,813 crore, making it one of the largest public issues of the year. Meanwhile, Alpine Texworld plans to mobilise ₹126.25 crore through a fresh equity issue.

Asian Markets Trade Lower

Weakness was also seen across major Asian equity markets.

• KOSPI (South Korea): Down 4.90%

• Nikkei 225 (Japan): Down 0.84%

• Hang Seng (Hong Kong): Down 0.86%

The broad-based decline reflected cautious investor sentiment across the region.

US Markets Ended Lower

Wall Street closed in negative territory in the previous session.

• Dow Jones: Fell 138 points (-0.26%)

• Nasdaq Composite: Declined 408 points (-1.55%)

• S&P 500: Slipped 60 points (-0.79%)

Technology stocks remained under pressure, contributing to the weakness in US indices.

Institutional Investors

Recent market data shows domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have continued to provide support to equities.

Over the past seven trading sessions:

• DIIs: Net buying of ₹7,039 crore

• FIIs/FPIs: Net buying of ₹971 crore

Despite intermittent foreign inflows, investors are closely monitoring global developments, crude oil prices and corporate earnings for further market direction.

Previous Session

On July 13, Indian markets ended almost unchanged. The Sensex gained 47 points to close at 77,616, while the Nifty edged up 4 points to settle at 24,211, indicating a largely range-bound trading session before today's decline.