Will Sensex, Nifty bounce back on Monday? Iran peace deal risks among 5 factors to drive D-St this week
The Indian equity market's recent rally ran out of steam on Friday, with benchmark indices ending sharply lower and breaking a five-session winning streak. Selling
The Indian equity market's recent rally ran out of steam on Friday, with benchmark indices ending sharply lower and breaking a five-session winning streak. Selling pressure in IT stocks, weak global cues, and other concerns weighed on sentiment.The Sensex dropped 607 points to settle at 76,802.90, while the Nifty50 fell 155 points to close at 24,013.10. The decline came after both indices had surged as much as 5% over the previous five trading sessions. Here are five key factors that could shape market sentiment in the days ahead.1.) US-Iran peace deal on thin ice?Although the United States and Iran had agreed to a 60-day ceasefire to facilitate negotiations, tensions remained high after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz had been closed. The U.S. military, however, said commercial shipping traffic through the strategic waterway remained uninterrupted.The developments threaten to complicate efforts to secure an interim peace agreement brokered by Pakistan and signed on Wednesday by U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, aimed at ending nearly four months of conflict.Negotiators from both countries were scheduled to begin talks in Switzerland on Sunday, even as U.S. officials rejected Tehran's claims that the Strait of Hormuz had been shut.2.) Will oil rise again?Brent crude prices advanced on Friday after scheduled talks between the United States and Iran in Switzerland were abruptly cancelled, highlighting ongoing uncertainty around efforts to convert a temporary agreement into a lasting peace arrangement.Brent crude futures gained 0.9% to close at $80.57 a barrel.
West Texas Intermediate futures were trading 1.23% higher at $77.54 earlier in the day. Oil prices had briefly moved lower after Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire.Switzerland's foreign ministry said the US-Iran talks planned at Bürgenstock on Friday would no longer take place.3.) IT selloff to continue?IT stocks bore the brunt of Friday's selloff, with Infosys, TCS, Tech Mahindra and HCL Tech tumbling as much as 7%.The weakness followed an 11% slide in Accenture's shares on Wall Street after the consulting giant revised its FY26 revenue growth forecast to 3-4% from its earlier guidance of 3-5%. The company also projected fourth-quarter revenue of $17.75 billion-$18.4 billion, below analysts' expectations of $18.47 billion, according to LSEG data.The index continues to trade below its key short- and long-term moving averages, while the RSI has slipped below 40, indicating bearish momentum. Additionally, DI- has crossed above DI+ on the ADX indicator, reflecting growing seller dominance. The 27,050–27,000 zone remains a crucial support zone. Any sustainable move below this zone can lead Index extending its weakness further on the downside. The resistance is placed in the 28,250–28,300 zone.4.) Will rupee strengthen more?The rupee ended almost unchanged against the US dollar on Friday after a volatile session. Gains from the unwinding of long dollar positions were offset by weakness in regional currencies and outflows linked to index rebalancing. The currency closed at 94.32 per dollar, little changed from the previous session.Even so, the rupee registered its strongest weekly performance in 11 weeks, aided by debt inflows.
The BriefWire