Indian equity benchmarks ended around 0.75% lower on Thursday due to sharp surge in crude oil prices amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the West Asia and concerns over supply disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz. Besides, weak global trends and foreign fund outflows weighed on investor sentiment. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,468.42 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data. 

Some of the important factors in trade:

West Asia conflict raises inflation risks; India's domestic strength offers cushion: The Finance Ministry’s report said the ongoing conflict in West Asia poses a significant supply-side shock with rising risks to inflation, trade and financial flows, though India’s strong domestic demand, policy buffers, resilient financial system and continued public investment are expected to provide a measure of insulation to the economy.

FDI in India may cross $90 billion in 2025-26: DPIIT Secretary Amardeep Singh Bhatia said the total foreign direct investment (FDI) in India has crossed $88 billion during April-February FY26, and it is likely to reach $90 billion in the last fiscal. 

Cost of funds for NBFCs, HFCs may rise marginally over medium term: India Ratings and Research said the cost of funds for non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) and housing finance companies (HFCs) could rise marginally over the medium term amid geopolitical tensions, uncertain macroeconomic conditions and the limited transmission of policy rate cuts by banks.  

Exports see healthy rise in April so far despite challenges in West Asia: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said India’s exports have shown a healthy increase during the first three weeks of April so far despite challenges due to the ongoing West Asia crisis.

Global front: European markets were trading mostly in green as investors reacted to a slew of corporate earnings updates and looked ahead to the Bank of England's monetary policy announcement. Asian markets ended mostly lower as a sharp rise in oil prices on fears of a prolonged conflict in the Middle East overshadowed stronger-than-expected earnings from major U.S. tech giants. 

Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 582.86 points or 0.75% to 76,913.50 and the CNX Nifty was down by 180.10 points or 0.74% to 23,997.55. 

The BSE Sensex touched high and low of 77,254.33 and 76,258.86, respectively. There were 9 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.  

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.51%, TECK up by 0.28% and Telecom up by 0.03%, while Metal down by 2.13%, Realty down by 1.44%, Basic Materials down by 1.36%, PSU down by 1.31% and FMCG down by 1.13% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 1.64%, Infosys up by 1.20%, Adani Ports &SEZ up by 0.98%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.95% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.72%. On the flip side, Eternal down by 2.85%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.70%, Tata Steel down by 2.13%, Larsen & Toubro down by 2.03% and Trent down by 1.97% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said that bank credit growth in India slowed to 14.88 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in the fortnight ended April 15, 2026 as compared to 15.96 per cent growth recorded in the previous fortnight ending March 31, 2026. Bank credit stood at Rs 214 lakh crore in the fortnight ended April 15, down from Rs 218 lakh crore in the preceding fortnight. During the reporting period, overall credit in India contracted by 2.06 per cent, or Rs 4.51 lakh crore. In the fortnight ended April 18, 2025, total credit in India stood at Rs 186 lakh crore. 

During the fortnight ended March 31, Indian bank credit grew at its fastest pace in the last two fiscal years, as banks rushed to meet their balance sheet targets ahead of the financial year-end, resulting in a sharp increase in both loans and deposits. Bank credit growth stayed firmly in double digits for over seven consecutive months, reflecting sustained momentum in lending activity. The acceleration in credit expansion gathered pace following a significant rationalisation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) structure, which took place around September 2025. The continued double-digit growth indicates a revival in credit demand from both retail borrowers and corporates in recent months, underscoring improving economic activity and stronger financing needs across sectors.

On the other hand, deposits of banks grew 12.12 per cent year-on-year in the fortnight ended April 15. In absolute terms, deposits stood at Rs 261.88 lakh crore for the fortnight ended April 15, 2026, as compared to Rs 233.56 lakh crore in the fortnight ended April 18, 2025. For the fortnight ended April 15, 2026, investments by banks in state and central government securities rose to Rs 70.64 lakh crore, up from Rs 68.49 lakh crore a year earlier.   

CNX Nifty touched high and low of 24,087.45 and 23,796.85, respectively. There were 15 stocks advancing against 34 stocks, while 1 stock remained unchanged on the index. 

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Auto up by 5.19%, Sun Pharma up by 1.76%, Infosys up by 1.29%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.04% and Tech Mahindra up by 0.96%. On the flip side, Tata Motors Passenger down by 2.92%, Eternal down by 2.92%, Hindalco down by 2.83%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.61% and Tata Steel down by 2.08% were the top losers.   

European markets were trading mostly in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 106.59 points or 1.03% to 10,319.70 and Germany’s DAX gained 51.54 points or 0.21% to 24,006.10, while France’s CAC fell 36.13 points or 0.45% to 8,036.00.

Asian markets ended mostly lower on Thursday tracking Wall Street’s muted cues overnight as fears of a prolonged conflict in the Middle East overshadowed stronger-than-expected earnings from major US tech giants. Meanwhile, surging crude oil prices and US Federal Reserve's hawkish hold have also prompted profit-taking across the region. The 8-4 FOMC vote was the most divided since October 1992, signalling that interest rates will likely stay ‘higher for longer’ to combat stubborn inflation. A private report said that the US military would brief President Trump on potential action against Iran, raising concerns that the conflict could escalate. Trump also reiterated that the US would maintain its naval blockade on Iran until a nuclear agreement is reached. Japan's high energy import dependency, with roughly 90% of its energy needs imported, also kept traders and market participants cautious. However, Chinese shares climbed after data showed manufacturing PMI beat market expectations at 50.3 in April 2026, while a private survey revealed that the manufacturing PMI climbed to its highest level since December 2020 at 52.2.