‘Rising crude oil prices pose headwinds for Indian markets’

The Middle East skirmishes have pushed up Brent crude to $91 and if oil continues to rise that can pose macro headwinds for India, says V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

Headwinds which have the potential to impact equity markets have emerged. One is geopolitical: the Iran-Israel skirmishes. The second is the concern that the rate cut expected from the Fed can be lower than three and that the first cut may come only in October. The US jobs data to be released on Friday will throw more light on this, he said.

It is possible that the exuberant Indian investors and DIIs flush with money may ignore the headwinds and buy the dips, imparting resilience to the market, he added.

Amidst market weakness, banking stocks provide opportunities to buy. Data regarding deposit and loan growth from banking majors, particularly HDFC Bank are positive. Small finance banks data also indicate a healthy trend, he said.

Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities, said crude oil extended gains as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a security cabinet meeting that his country will operate against Iran and its proxies and will hurt those who seek to harm it.

Shares in Asia fell on Friday following US stocks, as interest rate uncertainty and geopolitical tensions weighed on sentiment. US equities closed sharply lower on Thursday on fears about the Federal Reserve’s ability to cut interest rates this year amid a framework of inflationary pressures, climbing oil prices and a resilient economy, he said.

BSE Sensex is trading at 74,204 points, down 22 points on Friday. L&T, Bajaj Finance, and Ultratech Cement are down more than 1 per cent.