Nifty below 22,400 level; oil & gas shares under pressure

The key equity benchmarks traded with major losses in mid-morning trade, weighed down by weak global cues, sustained foreign selling and elevated crude oil prices. The Nifty traded below the 22,400 level. Oil & gas shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.

At 11:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 712.02 points or 0.98% to 71,926.68. The Nifty 50 index lost 241.50 points or 1.07% to 22,361.55.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index declined 1.58% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index fell 1.80%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,067 shares rose and 2,915 shares fell. A total of 243 shares were unchanged.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Oil & Gas index fell 1.35% to 10,479.50. The index slipped 2.1% in the two consecutive trading sessions.

Aegis Logistics (down 4.62%), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (down 2.64%), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (down 2.13%), Petronet LNG (down 1.72%), GAIL (India) (down 1.72%), Aegis Vopak Terminals (down 1.67%), Reliance Industries (down 1.62%), Adani Total Gas (down 1.52%), Chennai Petroleum Corporation (down 1.4%), and Indraprastha Gas (down 1.34%) declined.

Global Markets:

Asian indices traded mixed on Thursday, tracking the previous session's weakness on Wall Street as elevated US Treasury yields continued to weigh on risk appetite.

Investors assessed minutes from the Federal Reserve's September meeting, which showed that all 19 policymakers supported the latest rate increase, while most participants considered another rate hike likely to be appropriate by the end of the year. The minutes also highlighted differing views among officials over the inflation outlook and the appropriate pace of further tightening.

US stocks ended lower on Wednesday as longer-dated Treasury yields remained elevated. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.66%, while the S&P 500 fell 0.22%. The Nasdaq Composite also declined 0.22%.

Crude oil prices gained amid renewed geopolitical concerns after reports that the Trump administration was considering military strike options against Iran before the US midterm elections. Brent crude futures rose 1.16% to $101.36 a barrel.

Investors will now turn their attention to the upcoming third-quarter earnings season. Corporate results, Treasury yields, oil prices and expectations for further Fed rate hikes are likely to remain key drivers for global equity markets.

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