Market Wrap, 24 July 2026: Benchmarks Tumble On Weak Global Cues

The Sensex and Nifty 50 ended Friday in the red as the West Asia crisis coupled with rising crude oil prices took a toll on investors’ sentiments. At the end of Friday’s trading session, the:

• Nifty 50 stood at 23,767.45, down 0.43%

• Sensex stood at 76,059.77, down 0.43%

Broader markets also traded lower. While the Nifty Midcap 100 index ended 0.10% lower, the Nifty Smallcap 100 index declined 0.32%. On the sectoral front, the Nifty Realty, Nifty Auto and Nifty Metal ended in the red. On the other hand, the Nifty FMCG and Nifty Media outperformed (see table).

Nifty 50 Gainers And Losers

Stocks of the following companies were the top gainers and losers in the Nifty 50 index today:

Factors That Pushed Markets Down

The following factors pushed down markets in today’s trade:

• The continuous hostilities between Iran and the US spooked investors.

• Rise in oil prices to above $100 per barrel in early trade for the first time since May following attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.

• The rupee weakened against the US dollar in early trade, opening at 96.63 against the dollar.

• Selling of Indian equities by foreign investors on Thursday, where they offloaded shares worth ₹2,999 crore.

• Expectations of a Fed rate hike due to rising oil prices and weak global cues, with Asian markets slumping in early trade.

• Rise in US Treasury yields.

Crude Oil Rates Today

Crude oil prices remained elevated as West Asia remained on the boil. At 15:38, Brent oil futures for September 2026 stood at $97.43 per barrel. During the same time, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures for September 2026 stood at $89.43 per barrel.

Other Important Headlines

Some of the other major headlines of the day are as follows:

• Hindalco Industries seeks to invest ₹50,000 crore in India over the next three years across upstream and downstream businesses.

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed a major overhaul of the online dispute resolution framework for the securities market.

• SEBI is considering replacing the existing 20% minimum upfront margin requirement for cash market trades with a risk-based framework that could bring down margin requirements in highly liquid stocks.

Gold And Silver Rates Today

Gold and silver traded higher on the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX). At 15:40, gold August futures on the MCX stood at ₹1,43,266 per 10 grams, up 0.31%. September silver futures during the same time stood at ₹2,22,142 per kg, up 1.26%.

Markets are likely to remain on tenterhooks in the coming days as the US and Iran hostilities show little signs of cooling. Investors are expected to closely track developments in West Asia. Further escalation is likely to influence crude oil prices, global risk sentiment and domestic market direction.

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