Equities Fall as Brent Crude Nears Four-Year High and Rupee Hits Record Low

An end-of-day recap of all that transpired in the Indian markets, highlighting the major price movements and the factors driving them

istock.com/Rasi Bhadramani

By Dehuti Jani

April 30, 2026 at 11:45 AM IST

Indian equities ended lower on Thursday as surging crude oil prices, a record-low rupee and hawkish signals from the US Federal Reserve weighed on investor sentiment. The Nifty50 declined 0.74% to 23,997.55, while the BSE Sensex fell 0.75% to 76,913.50. Despite April gains helping markets recover part of March’s sharp correction, Thursday’s decline highlighted lingering fragility in risk sentiment.

Investor concerns intensified after Brent Crude surged toward $126 per barrel, its highest level in four years, following reports that the US had rejected Iran’s peace proposal and was considering tougher measures around the Strait of Hormuz blockade. The sharp rise in oil prices revived fears of imported inflation, pressure on India’s current account and weaker economic growth, while the rupee fell to a record low against the US dollar.

Among sectoral losers, metal and construction-related stocks underperformed sharply, while IT and pharma stocks showed relative resilience as investors shifted toward defensive sectors. Tata Motors, Eternal and Hindalco Industries emerged as the top drags on the Nifty50 index.

Broader markets also weakened, with the Nifty Midcap and Nifty SmallCap indices declining 0.98% and 0.48%, respectively. Indian markets will remain closed on Friday for a holiday and reopen on Monday, May 4.

Top Movers of the Day

Syngene International surged 8.31% to ₹468 and touched an intraday high of ₹518.55 as strong buying interest outweighed a 19% YoY decline in January-March profit, supported by a sharp sequential earnings recovery and leadership changes.

Newgen Software jumped 5.8% after reporting robust January-March earnings and announcing a dividend for shareholders.

Meesho gained 12.7% to ₹194.60 after JP Morgan initiated coverage with a bullish target price of ₹215.

Vedanta fell 64.7% to ₹273 as the stock traded ex-demerger for its four newly separated entities.

HEG declined 9.7% to ₹594 amid broad-based weakness in metal and industrial stocks.

Force Motors dropped 4.84% to ₹19,970 after reporting a 36% YoY decline in January-March net profit.

Adani Energy Solutions slipped 5.16% to ₹1,344 amid weakness across Adani Group stocks and the broader power sector.

Gujarat Fluorochemicals rose 6.8% to ₹3,590 despite broader market weakness as strong buying interest supported the stock.

National Aluminium Company declined 8.76% to ₹395 after reporting a 16.7% YoY fall in quarterly profit.

Tata Motors declined 2.92% to ₹342 due to a weak October-December performance including lower margin, rising input costs, and slowing sales at JLR.

Hindalco Industries fell 2.83% to ₹1,037 as rising crude oil prices and weak global sentiment pressured auto and metal stocks.

Futures & Options
Nifty May 2026 futures closed at 24,136.70, trading at a premium of 139.15 points over the spot Nifty 50 close of 23,997.55 despite weakness in the cash market. The Nifty 50 declined 180.10 points or 0.74% amid pressure from rising crude oil prices, a weaker rupee and hawkish US Federal Reserve signals.

Market volatility increased sharply, with India VIX jumping 5.86% to 18.46. In the F&O segment, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance and Waaree Energies were the most actively traded stock futures contracts. The May 2026 derivatives series will expire on 26 May 2026.

Bonds
India's government bond yields rose on Thursday, with the benchmark 10-year G-Sec yield rising to its highest level in more than three weeks, as adverse global cues and surging oil prices weakened sentiment. The benchmark 6.48% 2035 government bond yield ended at 7.0148%, compared with 6.9928% on Wednesday. The selloff was driven by a rise in US Treasury yields, with the US 10-year yield climbing toward 4.43%, alongside a sharp jump in Brent Crude prices toward $121 per barrel amid escalating US-Iran tensions.

Investor sentiment in the secondary market remained defensive as central government raised ₹290 billion through debt auction, while the Indian rupee’s slide to record lows beyond 95 per dollar added further pressure on sovereign bonds by intensifying concerns around inflation, external balances and foreign investor flows.

Forex
Indian rupee touched a record low on Thursday as surging crude oil prices and concerns over India’s economic outlook weighed heavily on sentiment. The currency weakened to an all-time intraday low of 95.33 per US dollar, surpassing the previous record low of 95.21 touched in late March, before recovering partially to close at 94.91.

Investor concerns intensified as Brent Crude prices climbed to their highest levels since 2022 amid escalating tensions in West Asia and continued disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz. Higher oil prices threatened to worsen India’s inflation outlook, widen external deficits and pressure economic growth, leading to weaker capital flows and increased pressure on the rupee.

Crypto
Crypto markets traded sharply lower on Thursday as rising geopolitical tensions, elevated crude oil prices and uncertainty around the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook weakened investor confidence across risk assets. Bitcoin fell 2.15% over the past 24 hours to trade near $75,515, while most major cryptocurrencies remained in negative territory. Ethereum declined 3.72% to around $2,240 as broader market selling intensified.

Market sentiment deteriorated further after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at 3.75%, although the decision exposed the sharpest internal division among policymakers since the early 1990s. Combined with the surge in Brent Crude prices and continuing tensions in West Asia, the developments reinforced caution across speculative assets including cryptocurrencies.

US Stock Futures
US stock futures traded lower early Thursday following the latest batch of quarterly earnings from major technology companies. Futures linked to the S&P 500 declined 0.22%, while Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.23%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 285 points, or 0.58%. Investor sentiment remained cautious as markets assessed Big Tech earnings alongside elevated crude oil prices, persistent geopolitical tensions in West Asia and the Federal Reserve’s hawkish policy stance.

US Treasury Notes
Yields on US Treasury climbed to multi-week highs on Thursday after the Federal Reserve adopted a more hawkish tone on inflation and interest rates following a divided policy decision. Investors reacted cautiously as policymakers signalled that interest rate cuts may not materialise for the remainder of the year. The policy-sensitive 2-year Treasury yield rose to 3.896%, after touching a high of 3.945%, while the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.398%, reaching its highest level since late March. Markets interpreted comments from Jerome Powell as reinforcing a “higher-for-longer” interest rate outlook amid persistent inflation concerns.

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