SerpApi.Org
By Bharath Rajeswaran
July 23 (Reuters) - Indian shares extended losses on Thursday, as oil prices climbed past $96 a barrel after the U.S. launched fresh strikes on Iran and Yemen's Houthis targeted oil tankers in the Red Sea, hurting global risk appetite.
Elevated oil prices pose a key risk for India, the world's third-largest crude importer and consumer, by stoking inflation, widening the trade gap, squeezing growth and corporate margins.
A 3% drop each in drug maker Dr Reddy's Laboratories and oil marketing company HPCL due to weak quarterly results also weighed on markets.
The benchmark Nifty 50 fell 0.25% to 23,934.40, while the BSE Sensex shed 0.29% to 76,536.12 by 10:01 a.m. IST, both on course for a fourth straight session of losses, during which they have dropped 1.7% and 2.2%, respectively.
Fifteen of the 16 major sectors declined. The broader small-caps and mid-caps fell 0.5% each.
"When crude trades above $95, it is bound to have a sentimental impact on the Indian market," said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, adding that the country's "vulnerability to high oil prices is once again becoming a macro concern."
"From the markets' perspective, higher crude will keep stock prices largely subdued."
Private lender IndusInd Bank lost 6% despite a jump in June quarter profit on lower provisions, as investors booked profits. The stock had surged 7.2% in six sessions in the run-up to results and hit a 17-month high.
The country's No. 2 software company Infosys fell 1%. Drug maker Cipla and airline operator IndiGo lost 0.6% and 0.4%, ahead of their quarterly results due later in the day.
Bucking the broader trend, NTPC Green Energy jumped 7.4% as quarterly profit ticked up.
Upstream oil companies such as ONGC and Oil India, which benefit from higher oil prices, rose 0.5% and 1.8%, respectively.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Rashmi Aich and Janane Venkatraman)
