Markets opened lower on Tuesday as President Donald Trump’s ultimatum to Iran — demanding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz by 8.00 PM ET (6.30 AM IST, Wednesday) — kept investors on edge. The , which closed at 74,106.85 on Monday, opened at 73,734.36 and was trading at 73,408.68, down 698.17 points or 0.94 per cent, as of 9.16 AM IST. The, which had closed at 22,968.25, opened at 22,838.70 and slipped further to 22,762.15, down 206.10 points or 0.90 per cent, at the same time.
The selloff comes after three consecutive sessions of gains for the Nifty — a streak that market watchers had flagged as notable. As HDFC Securities’ Head of Prime Research Devarsh Vakil noted, “Nifty has never risen for more than three consecutive trading sessions since the U.S.-Iran War started in late February.”
WTI crude oil climbed to $115 a barrel after Trump reaffirmed his deadline, threatening strikes on Iranian power plants and bridges. The Strait of Hormuz, which handles roughly one-fifth of global oil flows, has remained disrupted since the conflict began on February 28, pushing crude prices up approximately 90 per cent year-to-date. Iran rejected a U.S.-backed 45-day ceasefire proposal — supported by Pakistan, Egypt, and Türkiye — instead demanding a permanent end to hostilities, sanctions relief, and war damage compensation.
Elevated crude prices continue to weigh on India’s macro outlook. Enrich Money CEO Ponmudi R pointed out that crude “hovering in the $110–113 range continues to act as a significant overhang,” raising inflation concerns and widening India’s import bill. The rupee, however, showed some resilience, trading within the 92.50–93.20 range, supported by what analysts describe as active Reserve Bank of India intervention. The rupee had appreciated 4 paise on Monday on hopes of de-escalation.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers, offloading ₹8,167 crore on April 6, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) provided a partial cushion, purchasing over ₹8,000 crore. Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, noted that “FPI selling is purely short-term guided only by the weakness in the rupee and high bond yields in the US,” adding that “patient investors who can sit through this period of short-term aberration have an opportunity with low risk to buy high quality financials, particularly the leading banking stocks.”
On the Nifty 50, gainers were limited to just two stocks. rose 1.34 per cent, opening at ₹933.95 and last trading at ₹939.90, with volume of 5,03,661 shares worth ₹4,727.46 lakh. gained 0.98 per cent, last trading at ₹199.22 against a previous close of ₹197.29, with 6,13,123 shares changing hands worth ₹1,220.24 lakh.
Losers were broad-based. Eternal fell 1.82 per cent to ₹227.98 from a previous close of ₹232.20. IndiGo dropped 1.81 per cent to ₹4,234.30 against a previous close of ₹4,312.50. Eicher Motors declined 1.64 per cent to ₹6,487.50 from ₹6,596.00. shed 1.63 per cent to ₹1,038.00, while Adani Enterprises fell 1.63 per cent to ₹1,871.20.
On the banking front, Bank Nifty faces resistance in the 52,800–53,000 zone, with support at 52,000–52,100. The index surged over 1,500 points intraday on Monday before closing at 52,609.10, up 2.06 per cent. Livelong Wealth founder Hariprasad K flagged that India VIX remains elevated above 25, noting that “at such levels, option premiums remain expensive and the expected pace of theta decay is significantly slower.”
Short-term resistance for Nifty is placed at 23,465, with supports at 22,800 and 22,540. With today being a weekly expiry day and the geopolitical deadline hours away, traders are being advised to stay selective and wait for confirmation near key levels before taking fresh directional positions.