Oil Companies' Shares Plunge Up to 9% as Crude Hits $100
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Mumbai, March 9 (NationPress) Stocks of leading state-owned oil marketing companies (OMCs) experienced significant pressure on Monday, plunging by nearly 9 percent during early trading sessions due to the escalating conflict involving Iran, which has disrupted energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and unsettled global markets.
As a result, global crude oil prices have surged above the $100-per-barrel threshold.
In this context, shares of prominent OMCs like Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) faced declines of up to 8.67 percent.
As of 11:20 a.m., IOCL shares dropped 7.29 percent, reaching an intraday low of Rs 156.30, down from the previous closing price of Rs 168.60 on the BSE.
Simultaneously, BPCL shares fell 8.43 percent to an intraday low of Rs 322.95, down from Rs 352.70 on the same exchange.
HPCL saw the most substantial decline, plummeting 8.67 percent to an intraday low of Rs 370.10 from its last close of Rs 405.25, as per BSE data.
These public sector companies faced heightened selling pressure as crude oil prices approached $110 per barrel, following production cuts from major Middle Eastern producers, while the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively blocked due to the ongoing conflict with Iran.
In related news, U.S. President Donald Trump defended the rise in oil prices, asserting that the increase in crude costs is a temporary outcome of addressing Iran's nuclear threat.
“The short-term surge in oil prices, which will decline swiftly after the resolution of the Iran nuclear threat, is a minor price to pay for the safety and peace of the USA and the world,” Trump stated on the social media platform Truth Social.
This increase represents one of the most significant weekly gains in oil futures trading since the early 1980s.
The main indices also faced downward pressure, with Sensex and Nifty 50 trading in the negative, down 3.16 percent at 76,424.55 and 3.07 percent at 23,697.80, respectively.