The effective closure of Hormuz has choked off a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas.
Oil briefly dropped below $100 a barrel and gas slumped, as Iran evaluated a new proposal from the US to end their near 10-week war.
Benchmark Brent fell as much as 12 per cent to $96.75 a barrel in London, while West Texas Intermediate dropped up to 13 per cent. European natural gas plunged as much as 14 per cent. Oil and gas later pared about half of those losses after Trump said in a Truth Social post on Wednesday that if Iran doesn’t agree, “the bombing starts.”
Washington’s one-page memorandum of understanding will, if Iran accepts it, lead to the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and lifting of the American blockade on Iranian ports, according to a person familiar with the matter. Nothing has yet been agreed, the person said, and detailed negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme will come later in the process.
News of the potential breakthrough — reported earlier by Axios — came as US President Donald Trump faces increasing pressure to end the war he started alongside Israel at the end of February. China added its voice to global diplomatic pressure to wrap up the conflict, just two days after clashes in the critical strait drove oil higher and raised fears that a US-Iran ceasefire was falling apart.
Iran is expected to send a response to the US proposal via mediator Pakistan in the next two days, the person said.
Part of the plan reported by Axios “contains excessive and unrealistic proposals which have been strongly rejected by our country’s authorities in recent days,” Iran’s semi-official Iranian Students’ News Agency reported, without saying where it got the information.
“The oil price is reacting on shift in sentiment instead of market balances, driven by news of a potential deal between the US and Iran,” said Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst at UBS Group AG in Zurich. “It remains unclear when flow through the strait would resume.”
Crude has climbed by about 40 per cent since the conflict started at the end of February, cutting off hundreds of millions of barrels of Persian Gulf oil from global markets. Flows through the chokepoint have been constrained by a double blockade, with Tehran obstructing shipping while the US is stopping vessels from accessing Iranian ports.
On Wednesday, Iran said safe passage through Hormuz would be ensured under a new protocol.
At a meeting in Beijing, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi to keep negotiating, saying “a resumption of hostilities is inadvisable.” That comes before Trump’s expected summit with China’s President Xi Jinping on May 14-15.
On Tuesday, Trump said that the US would pause an effort to escort ships through Hormuz to see if a deal can be reached with Iran. Trump said that decision was made at the request of Pakistan — which is helping mediate talks between Washington and Tehran — as well as other countries.
Before Trump’s announcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters at the White House that offensive operations against Iran were over.
Trump has repeatedly said significant progress has been made in negotiations with Iran to end the war, only for nothing substantial to emerge. On Tuesday, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian called the US position unrealistic, saying Tehran wouldn’t “ultimately submit to its unilateral demands.”
Also on Tuesday, Washington played down the prospect of a return to active war, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirming the truce that began just under a month ago is still in place. Meanwhile, General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said attacks by Iran on vessels in the Persian Gulf and energy infrastructure in the United Arab Emirates didn’t constitute a breach of a ceasefire.
The shutdown around Hormuz has left more than 1,550 commercial vessels, carrying some 22,000 sailors, trapped in the Persian Gulf, Caine said.
Still, any breakthrough in peace talks will take much longer to filter through to energy markets.
“When the Strait opens we do believe it will take half a year for oil to get back to normal,” Equinor Chief Financial Officer Torgrim Reitan said on the company’s quarterly earnings conference call. “For gas, it will take much longer.”
The effective closure of Hormuz has choked off a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas. While most of that fuel would normally go to Asia, the disruption threatens to intensify competition for a limited global pool of seaborne supply as Europe refills gas inventories before next winter.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
New Delhi: View of the Supreme Court of India, in New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Thursday remarked that if individuals start questioning certain religious practices or matters of religion before a constitutional court then there will be hundreds of petitions questioning different rituals, leading to the breaking of religions and the civilisation.
The nine-judge Constitution bench is hearing petitions related to discrimination against women at religious places, including the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, and on the ambit and scope of the religious freedom practised by multiple faiths, including Dawoodi Bohras.
The bench comprises Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justices B V Nagarathna, M M Sundresh, Ahsanuddin Amanullah, Aravind Kumar, Augustine George Masih, Prasanna B Varale, R Mahadevan and Joymalya Bagchi.
The Central Board of Dawoodi Bohra Community filed a PIL in 1986 seeking the setting aside of a 1962 judgment, which had struck down the Bombay Prevention of Excommunication Act, 1949 — this law made excommunication of any community member illegal.
The 1962 Constitution bench judgment said, “It is evident from the religious faith and tenets of the Dawoodi Bohra community that the exercise of the power of excommunication by its religious head on religious grounds formed part of the management of its affairs in matters of religion and the 1949 Act in making even such excommunication invalid, infringed the right of the community under Article 26(b) of the Constitution.”
Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, representing a group of reformist Dawoodi Bohras, submitted that a practice which is conducted in response to secular and social actions of an individual cannot be the subject of Constitutional protection under Article 25 of the Constitution and consequently cannot be a ‘matter of religion’ under Article 26 of the Constitution.
Ramachandran told the court that a practice which may have a religious aspect but also significantly and adversely impacts fundamental rights is not immune to restriction under Article 25 of the Constitution or Article 26 of the Constitution.
Responding to the submission, Justice Nagarathna said that if everybody starts questioning certain religious practices or matters of religion before a constitutional court, then “what happens to this civilisation where religion is so intimately connected with the Indian society”.
“There will be hundreds of petitions questioning this right that right, opening of the temple, and the closure of the temple. We are conscious of this,” she said.
Adding to the response, Justice Sundresh said, “Every religion will break and every constitutional court will have to be closed.
“If the dispute between two entities are allowed then everybody will question everything. In your case there may be a civil wrong committed to you but in another case, another member will say I don’t agree. It is regressive. To what extent can we go in a country like ours which is progressive and on the move is the question,” he said.
Justice Nagarathna went on that what sets apart India from any other region is that “we are a civilisation” despite having so many pluralities and diversities? Asserting that diversity is the country’s strength, she added, “One of the constants in our Indian society is the relationship of human beings — man, woman and child — with the religion.” “Now, how a religious practice or a matter of religion is questioned, where it is questioned, whether it can be questioned, whether it has to be a question within a denomination for a reform or whether the state will have to do or you want the court to adjudicate upon all these aspects. This is troubling us.
“What we lay down, is for a civilisation that is India. India must progress despite all its economy, everything there is a constant in us. We can’t break that constant. That is what is troubling us ,” she said.
Ramachandran replied that India is a civilisation under the Constitution and therefore nothing which goes against the grain of constitution can be continued in a civilised society.
He said that’s where court’s task come in and “it can’t throw hands” and say there will be so many petitions.
BlackRock, the world’s largest money manager, is set to invest in a dollar bond to be issued by a unit of India’s Shapoorji Pallonji Group this month, two people directly familiar with the transaction said.
The asset manager is considering an initial investment of $100 million to $200 million in the bond issue via an Asia-focused fund, a move likely to reassure other investors, the first source said.
The deal would be a private placement, and the launch timing could not be ascertained immediately. Deutsche Bank is the arranger.
The SP Group unit, Goswami Infratech, is planning to raise about $3 billion, of which $750 million to $950 million would be from the dollar bond and the remainder through rupee-denominated debt, the sources said.
The sources requested anonymity since they are not authorised to speak to the media. Deutsche Bank, BlackRock and Shapoorji Pallonji Group did not immediately respond to Reuters queries.
Goswami Infratech’s fundraising plans have been delayed, with a surge in rupee hedging costs playing a key role, forcing the company to seek an extension on the repayment of high-yield debt originally due on April 30.
The company had raised ₹14,300 crore ($1.51 billion) in June 2023 through a bond issue, in which marquee foreign investors had participated. The fresh debt raise would refinance these notes.
The company had raised ₹14,300 crore ($1.51 billion) in June 2023 through a bond issue, in which marquee foreign investors had participated. The fresh debt raise would refinance these notes.
“Apart from BlackRock, other large funds have shown intent to come on board as part of the bond issue,” the second person said.
Reuters could not determine the full list of investors likely to participate in the issue.
Earlier this week, CareEdge Ratings downgraded bonds of Goswami Infratech to B+ from BB-, citing delays in group-level fundraising.
Markets reversed their early morning gains by midday on Thursday, with both benchmark indices trading in negative territory as of 12.30 PM. The BSE Sensex was at 77,925.60, down 32.92 points or 0.04 per cent from its previous close of 77,958.52, after having opened at 78,339.24 in the morning. The Nifty50 was at 24,355.25, up just 24.30 points or 0.10 per cent from its Wednesday close of 24,330.95, though well below the gap-up open at 24,398.50 that traders had anticipated based on strong overnight global cues.
The morning’s optimism — driven by a Wall Street rally to record highs on US-Iran ceasefire hopes and an artificial intelligence stock surge led by Nvidia and AMD — failed to sustain through the first half of the Indian trading session. Of 4,211 stocks traded on BSE by midday, advances stood at 2,685 against 1,313 declines, with 213 stocks unchanged. A total of 180 stocks hit 52-week highs while 16 touched 52-week lows.
Among the top Nifty50 gainers at midday, HDFC Life Insurance was the standout performer, rising 3.61 per cent to ₹628.25 against a previous close of ₹606.35, after opening at ₹611. Bajaj Auto surged 3.40 per cent to ₹10,670 from a previous close of ₹10,319. Mahindra & Mahindra advanced 2.42 per cent to ₹3,380.80 against a previous close of ₹3,300.80. Grasim Industries added 1.62 per cent to ₹2,962 from ₹2,914.80, and NTPC gained an equal 1.62 per cent to trade at ₹401.25 against a previous close of ₹394.85.
On the losing side, Titan Company was the worst performer in the Nifty50, declining 1.73 per cent to ₹4,284 from its previous close of ₹4,359.60. Hindustan Unilever fell 1.45 per cent to ₹2,283.60 against a previous close of ₹2,317.10. TCS dropped 1.08 per cent to ₹2,409.20 from ₹2,435.40, while Nestle India slipped 1.06 per cent to ₹1,470.40 against a previous close of ₹1,486.10. Adani Ports shed 0.90 per cent to ₹1,732.50 from a previous close of ₹1,748.30.
The broader market context remained shaped by Wednesday’s macro developments. Foreign Institutional Investors were net sellers on Wednesday, offloading equities worth ₹5,834 crore, while Domestic Institutional Investors absorbed the selling with purchases worth ₹6,836 crore. Crude oil continued to soften, with Brent consolidating in the $95–97 range after retreating from highs above $110, providing some relief on the inflation front. The Indian rupee recorded its largest single-day gain since April 2 on Wednesday, appreciating 67 paise on the back of easing crude prices and a weaker dollar.
With approximately three hours remaining in the trading session — markets close at 3:30 PM — technical analysts flagged that Nifty needs to hold above 24,100–24,000 on the downside to preserve the current recovery structure. A move above 24,600 would be needed to extend gains toward the 24,800–25,000 range. Bank Nifty faces resistance at 56,800–57,000, with support seen at 55,200–55,400. Traders will continue to monitor geopolitical developments out of West Asia and domestic Q4 earnings results through the remainder of the session.
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Q4 Results Today, May 7, 2026, Live Updates: Find all the latest Q4 results 2026 updates of Aananda Lakshmi Spinning Mills, Aditya Birla Lifestyle Brands, ACME Solar Holdings, Alldigi Tech, Apollo Pipes, ARCL Organics, Axtel Industries, Bajaj Holdings & Investment, Bharat Forge, Biocon, Britannia Industries, CarTrade Tech and Wonderla Holidays.
Aditya Birla Real Estate, Akme Fintrade (India), Bajaj Auto, Bharat Seats, Blue Star, BMW Industries, Brigade Enterprises, Birlasoft, CG Power and Industrial Solutions, KPI Green Energy, KPIT Technologies, One 97 Communications, Shree Cement and more.
Stay tuned for more from BSE, Pidilite, Britannia, Lupin, Bharat Forge, Dabur, Biocon and more.
May 7, 2026 11:58
Quarterly results
CarTrade Q4 results live: Operational Highlights
• The Company engaged ~76 million average monthly unique visitors during Q4FY26, with organic traffic accounting for 95%, reflecting its strong brand equity and content leadership
• CarTrade Tech now operates across more than 540 physical locations, including Shriram Automall, CarWale abSure and Signature dealerships, and OLX India franchise outlets, further enhancing its nationwide presence and enhancing nationwide reach and customer access
• Its flagship digital platforms – CarWale, BikeWale, and OLX India, each cater to more than 150 million annual unique visitors, underscoring the scale and depth of engagement across the ecosystem
• The remarketing business delivered an annualized run-rate of 1.7 million auction listings, reaffirming its leadership position in the vehicle remarketing space
May 7, 2026 11:57
Quarterly results
CarTrade Tech Q4 results live: Highlights
Screenshot 2026-05-07 115644.png
May 7, 2026 11:54
Quarterly results
CarTrade Tech Q4 results live: Consolidated basis
Key Highlights – Q4FY26 (Consolidated):
• Total Income of ₹220.75 crores in Q4FY26, resulting in YoY growth of 17%
• EBITDA of ₹71.65 crores in Q4FY26, resulting in YoY growth of 55% and margin of 35%
• Profit after tax for the quarter is at ₹70.85 crores, resulting in YoY growth of 54%
Sula Vineyards shares dip as Q4 results reveal mixed financial performance amid sell-heavy trading and cautious market sentiment.
May 7, 2026 11:43
Quarterly results
Cartrade Tech Q4 results live: Q4 profit up
Cartrade Tech reported 64% y-o-y increase in standalone net profit for the quarter ended March 2026 at Rs 35.17 crore compared to Rs 21.44 crore in the same quarter last year.
In FY26, the PAT increased to Rs 115.46 crore as against Rs 74.45 crore in the year-ago period.
Shares traded 7% higher at Rs 1,943.80 on the NSE.
May 7, 2026 11:23
Stock down
KPIT Tech Q4 results live: Shares down
KPIT Tech shares traded 4.5% lower at Rs 714.50 at 11.22 am on the NSE, hitting a low of Rs 709.20 from the previous close of Rs 748.60, following a 33.3 per cent decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 163 crore in the March quarter of FY26
May 7, 2026 11:19
Stock up
Radico Khaitan Q4 results live: Shares up
Radico Khaitan shares up 1% to Rs 3,398 on the NSE, soaring to a high of Rs 3,405 from the previous close of Rs 3,357.20.
It reported almost a twofold increase in consolidated profit to Rs 179.46 crore during the March quarter.
May 7, 2026 11:14
Stock up
Polycab Q4 results live:
Polycab surges 5% after record FY26 results; analysts raise targets
Polycab shares rise 5% after record FY26 results; analysts upgrade targets amid strong revenue and profit growth.
May 7, 2026 11:13
Stock market
Stock market live, Q4 results live today: Markets dip
Sensex was down 127.75 pts or 0.16% to 77,830.77 at 11.11 am, Nifty 50 dipped 14.65 pts or 0.06% to 24,316.30.
May 7, 2026 11:09
Stock up
Rane (Madras) Q4 results live: Shares in green
Rane (Madras) stock traded 4% positive at Rs 948.70 at 11.08 am, scaling to a high of Rs 966.80 during the session compared to the previous close of Rs 913.50.
Shree Cement stock soared nearly 4% to a high of Rs 25,950 on the NSE from the previous close of Rs 24,975.
It reported a 4.31 per cent decline in consolidated profit to Rs 531.99 crore during the March quarter.
Revenue from operations was up 7.68 per cent to Rs 5,642.95 crore from Rs 5240.15 crore a year ago.
May 7, 2026 10:29
Stock down
Brigade Enterprises Q4 results live: Shares down
Brigade Enterprises traded 3% lower at Rs 780, hitting a low of Rs 776.10, down from the previous close of Rs 808.95.
Company reported a 24 per cent decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 190.70 crore during the March quarter and announced bonus shares to shareholders in ratio of 1:3.
May 7, 2026 10:25
Stock up
Meesho Q4 results live: Shares rise
Meesho shares zoomed over 7% to Rs 211.34 in early trade before trading at Rs 201.93 at 10.24 am, up from the previous close of Rs 196.28.
Its consolidated net loss narrowed to Rs 166.34 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31.
In addition, the board has approved an investment of up to Rs 100 crore in its subsidiary Meesho Payments Private Limited (MPPL).
May 7, 2026 10:23
Stock down
Godrej Consumer Q4 results live: Shares in red
Godrej Consumer shares were down 4% lower at Rs 1,047 on the NSE at 10.20 am, hitting a low of Rs 1,035, lower from the previous close of Rs 1,094.10.
The stock declined despite a 9.67 per cent increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 451.77 crore in the March quarter.
May 7, 2026 10:11
Stock up
Paytm Q4 results live: Shares jump over 6%, brokerages bullish
Paytm shares jump over 6% after Q4 profit, strong revenue growth. Should you buy?
Paytm shares rise over 6% after reporting Q4 profit and strong revenue growth, signaling positive investor sentiment.
Please check again for details @ www.researchbytes.com
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May 7, 2026 09:20
Stock market
Stock market live, Q4 results live today: Sensex, Nifty volatile after positive opening
Sensex rose by 90.82 pts or 0.12% to 78,049.34 at 9.17 am after opening higher at 78,339.24 from the previous close of 77,958.52, and Nifty 50 inched up 46.85 pts or 0.19% to 24,377.80.
May 7, 2026 09:14
Quarterly results
Bajaj Auto Q4 results live: Company warns motorcycle growth could slow8 to 7–9% in FY27 as Pulsar, exports and EVs power growth
Bajaj Auto warns motorcycle growth could slow to 7–9% in FY27 as Pulsar, exports and EVs power growth
Bajaj Auto has warned that India’s motorcycle industry could slow sharply in FY27, even as the company rides strong demand for Pulsar bikes, exports and electric vehicles to deliver record revenue, profit and shareholder payouts
Crude oil futures traded higher on Thursday morning as markets analysed the latest developments in West Asia peace talks.
At 10.01 am on Thursday, July Brent oil futures were at $101.95, up by 0.67 per cent, and June crude oil futures on WTI (West Texas Intermediate) were at $95.73, up by 0.68 per cent. May crude oil futures were trading at ₹9074 on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) during the initial hour of trading on Thursday against the previous close of ₹9017, up by 0.63 per cent, and June futures were trading at ₹8762 against the previous close of ₹8724, up by 0.44 per cent.
US President Donald Trump said he believed Iran wanted an agreement on the West Asia situation. In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, he said: “Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran. If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before.”
Referring to the reports by Axios that Iran and US are nearing a peace deal, Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of the Iranian parliament’s Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy, said it is more of a wish list than a reality.
The latest petroleum status report for the week ending May 1 showed a decline in crude oil inventories in the US.
According to the US EIA (Energy Information Administration), US commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 2.3 million barrels for the week ending May 1.
Total motor gasoline inventories decreased by 2.5 million barrels from last week and are 4 per cent below the five-year average for this time of year.
Distillate fuel inventories decreased by 1.3 million barrels last week and were about 11 per cent below the five-year average for this time of year.
Total products supplied in the US over the last four-week period averaged 20.3 million barrels per day, up by 2.6 per cent from the same period last year.
Over the past four weeks, motor gasoline product supplied averaged 9 million barrels per day, up by 1 per cent from the same period last year.
Distillate fuel product supplied averaged 3.8 million barrels per day over the past four weeks, up by 3.5 per cent from the same period last year. Jet fuel product supplied was down 6.2 per cent compared with the same four-week period last year.
May natural gas futures were trading at ₹259.20 on MCX during the initial hour of trading on Thursday against the previous close of ₹258.40, up by 0.31 per cent.
On the National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), May dhaniya contracts were trading at ₹12836 in the initial hour of trading on Thursday against the previous close of ₹12870, up down 0.26 per cent.
May jeera futures were trading at ₹20310 on NCDEX in the initial hour of trading on Thursday against the previous close of ₹20340, down by 0.15 per cent.
