Mumbai, June 23 (IANS) The Indian stock markets started the week on a weak note as tensions escalated in the Middle East, after the United States bombed three nuclear facilities in Iran, showing clear support for Israel in the ongoing conflict.

The development made investors cautious, leading to a fall in benchmark indices on Monday. The Sensex dropped 511.38 points, or 0.62 per cent, to close at 81,896.79. During the intra-day, it moved between a high of 82,169.67 and a low of 81,476.76.

Similarly, the Nifty also ended in the red. It fell 140.50 points, or 0.56 per cent, to settle at 24,971.90. The index had touched an intra-high of 25,057 and a low of 24,824.85 during the session.

Interestingly, broader markets performed better than the frontline indices. The Nifty Midcap100 closed with a gain of 0.36 per cent, while the Smallcap100 rose 0.70 per cent.

Out of the 30 stocks in the Sensex, HCL Tech, Infosys, Larsen and Toubro, Mahindra and Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, and ITC were the biggest losers, falling between 2.28 per cent and 1.21 per cent.

On the other hand, Trent, Bharat Electronics, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Bajaj Finserv were the top gainers, rising between 3.39 per cent and 0.58 per cent.

The performance of sectoral indices was mixed as Bank Nifty, Auto, FMCG, and Realty ended in the red while metal, consumer durables, pharma, and media sectors managed to close with gains.

However, the biggest loser was the Nifty IT index, which declined by 1.48 per cent as stocks like Coforge and Persistent Systems pulled the sector down.

“Last Friday, markets buildup in anticipation of easing Middle East tensions, following the US announcement of a two-week window to deliberate its involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict,” Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments Limited said.

“However, the unexpected US airstrike on Iran’s nuclear facilities over the weekend disrupted those expectations, triggering a sharp rise in crude oil prices and leading to consolidation in the domestic equity market,” he added.

The market’s fear gauge, India VIX, which indicates volatility, rose by 2.74 per cent to 14.05 points.

The Nifty recovered significantly after a gap-down opening amid weak geopolitical sentiment. A pullback in crude oil prices helped the Indian market pare some of its morning losses, although it still ended on a negative note.

Meanwhile, the rupee traded weak by 0.11 at 86.75 as the dollar index appreciated toward the 99 mark. “Technically, the rupee remains weak below 86, with the next support seen near 87,” said Jateen Trivedi of LKP Securities.

–IANS

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