Indian shares slide to near six-month low as US-Iran deadlock lifts oil prices

Business Recorder reported that Indian equities fell close to a six-month low on Monday, with the losing run now seven weeks old. The slide followed a rise in oil prices after peace talks between the United States and Iran stalled. Brent crude futures gained 3.7% to $108 a barrel.

US President Donald Trump said he had dismissed an Iranian proposal aimed at restoring passage through the Strait of Hormuz and ending the conflict. Tehran argued that only diplomacy could end its confrontation with the United States and Israel. Worries about crude deliveries through the waterway have grown, and costlier oil could push up inflation in India, the world's third-largest crude importer, while putting pressure on company profit margins. At the close, the Nifty 50 stood 1.56% lower at 22,780.25, and the BSE Sensex had slipped 1.52% to 72,771.72.

All 16 major sectors were lower, and small-cap stocks lost 1.9% while mid-caps fell 1.6%. HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries each slid 2.3%, while Yes Bank dropped 5.9% after Citi flagged near-term pressure from weaker earnings and higher credit costs. Over the past seven weeks the benchmarks have shed close to 6%, a run that ranks among the longest weekly declines on record.