Oil prices rise over  as Iran conflict stalemate keeps Hormuz shut

Oil prices rise over $1 as Iran conflict stalemate keeps Hormuz shut



Oil rose on Friday as efforts to resolve the Iran conflict have hit an impasse, ​with Tehran still blocking the Strait of Hormuz ​and the US Navy blocking exports of Iranian crude.


Brent crude futures ‌for July rose $1.19, or 1.08 per cent, to $111.59 a barrel by 0149 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate futures were up 39 cents, or 0.37 per cent, to $105.46.


Both benchmarks have posted gains across four straight months, with Brent’s June contract, which expired on Thursday, hitting $126.41 a barrel, the highest since March 2022.


Oil prices have been on the rise since the end of February when the US and Israel attacked Iran, resulting in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz ‌and the disruption of shipments of around one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply. Brent saw a 50 per cent rise in March alone.

 


A ceasefire has been in place since April 8, but on Thursday evening, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said it was not reasonable to expect quick results from US talks, according ​to the official IRNA news agency.


“Expecting to reach a result in a short time, ‌regardless of who the mediator is, in my opinion, is not very realistic,” he was quoted as saying.


Earlier in the ​day, ‌a senior official of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had threatened “long and painful strikes” on ‌US positions if Washington renewed attacks on Iran, pushing oil prices to intraday peaks before retreating.


US President Donald Trump was scheduled to ‌receive ​a briefing on ​Thursday on plans for a series of fresh military strikes on Iran to compel it to negotiate an end to ‌the conflict, a ​US official told Reuters. 



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Gold price climbs ₹10 to ₹1,50,670; silver down ₹100, trading at ₹2,49,900

Gold price climbs ₹10 to ₹1,50,670; silver down ₹100, trading at ₹2,49,900



Gold Price Today: The price of 24-carat gold rose ₹10 in early trade on Friday, with ten grams of the precious metal trading at ₹1,50,670, according to the GoodReturns website. However, the price of silver declined by ₹100, with one kilogram of the precious metal selling at ₹2,49,900. 

 


The price of 22-carat gold increased by ₹10, with ten grams of the yellow metal selling at ₹1,38,110. 

 


The price of ten grams of 24-carat gold stood at ₹1,50,670 in Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and ₹1,53,830 in Chennai.

 


In Delhi, the price of ten grams of 24-carat gold stood at ₹1,50,820.

 


  

In Mumbai, the price of ten grams of 22-carat gold was ₹1,38,110, the same as in Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and ₹1,41,010 in Chennai. 


                  


In Delhi, the price of ten grams of 22-carat gold stood at ₹1,38,260. 


   


The price of one kilogram of silver in Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai stood at ₹2,49,900. 

 


The price of one kilogram of silver in Chennai stood at ₹2,70,100. 

 


US gold held steady on Friday, but was on course for a weekly decline as higher oil prices fuelled inflation worries and clouded the interest rate outlook.

 


Spot gold was unchanged at $4,622.41 per ounce, as of 0046 GMT, after rising more than 2 per cent in the previous session.

 


Spot silver rose 0.8 per cent to $74.34 per ounce, platinum gained 0.1 per cent to $1,987.55, and palladium was up 0.3 per cent at $1,528.39.

 


(with inputs from Reuters)  

             



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Asian shares gain amid May Day holiday; oil steady near 1 per barrel

Asian shares gain amid May Day holiday; oil steady near $111 per barrel



Shares gained in Asia on Friday, though many markets in the region were closed for May Day holidays.

 


Brent crude’s price held steady at $111.66 per barrel while US benchmark crude oil added 46 cents to $105.53 a barrel.

 


Prospects for a deal to cement a three-week ceasefire in the Iran war remained clouded as Iran’s supreme leader said it will protect its nuclear and missile capabilities as a national asset.

 


In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.7 per cent to 59,687.65 as the Japanese yen gained against the US dollar.

 


The dollar bought 157.16 yen, up from 156.61 yen late Thursday. But that was well below the 160 yen level hit on Thursday.

 
 


Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 surged 1 per cent to 8,750.40.

 


US futures were higher after US stocks motored to more records Thursday on strong profits for Alphabet, Caterpillar and other big businesses. The gains came after the latest whipsaw moves for oil prices, which surged toward their highest levels since the war with Iran began, only to quickly regress.

 


The S&P 500 rallied 1 per cent and topped its prior all-time high to close out its best month in more than five years. It closed at 7,209.01. The Dow Jones Industrial Average leapt 1.6 per cent to 49,652.14, while the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.9 per cent to a record of 24,892.31.

 


Alphabet led the way and rallied 10 per cent after the owner of Google and YouTube reported profit for the latest quarter that almost doubled analysts’ expectations. Investments in artificial intelligence “are lighting up every part of the business,” CEO Sundar Pichai said.

 


It’s the latest company to deliver fatter profits for the start of 2026 than analysts expected, even with very high oil prices and uncertainty about the economy.

 


Friday brought some calm to the oil market, where prices surged on Thursday on worries over the potential long-term impact of the war on the flow of crude. Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers, keeping them pent up in the Persian Gulf and away from customers worldwide, while a US Navy blockade is preventing Iran from selling its own oil.

 


Traders are buying and selling contracts for different kinds of oil, going out for many months. In the most actively traded part of the market for Brent crude, for delivery in July, the price rose as high as $114.70 per barrel, fell back toward $107 and settled at $110.40 on Thursday, nearly unchanged from the day before.

 


So far during the war, the peak price for the most actively traded Brent contract has been $119.50, which was set last month.

 


In a less actively traded corner of the Brent market, the price for a barrel to be delivered in June briefly went above $126 overnight before pulling back toward $114.

 


Brent’s price was roughly $70 before the war.

 


In share trading, Caterpillar soared 9.9 per cent, Eli Lilly jumped 9.8 per cent, and O’Reilly Automotive leapt 8.4 per cent after all delivered profits for the latest quarter that topped analysts’ expectations. That’s big because stock prices tend to follow the track of corporate profits over the long term.

 


Meta Platforms tumbled 8.7 per cent even though the company behind Facebook and Instagram made more profit last quarter than expected. Investors focused more on its increased forecast for how much it will spend on data centres and other investments as it builds out its AI capabilities.

 


Doubts are still high among some investors about whether all the spending on AI will produce enough profit and productivity to make it worth it.

 


Microsoft fell 3.9 per cent after likewise raising its forecast for investments and other capital spending.

 


Amazon rose 0.8 per cent after swinging between gains and losses through the day. It blew past analysts’ expectations for earnings in the latest quarter.

 


In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after oil prices fell back. Reports also suggested the US economy’s growth accelerated by less in the first three months of the year than economists expected, while a measure of inflation worsened in March by about as much as expected.

 


A separate report said that fewer US workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, an indication of fewer layoffs, even though companies are announcing large cuts to workforces.

 


London’s FTSE 100 jumped 1.6 per cent after the Bank of England kept its main interest rate on hold. That followed similar decisions by the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday and the Bank of Japan on Tuesday to keep their rates unchanged.



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Stock Market Holiday today: BSE, NSE open or closed on May 1 for Maharashtra Day

Stock Market Holiday today: BSE, NSE open or closed on May 1 for Maharashtra Day



Stock Market holiday: Indian stock markets are closed today, May 1, 2026, on account of Maharashtra Day. 

 


All trading and settlement activities on the BSE and the National Stock Exchange (NSE), including equities, equity derivatives, Securities Lending and Borrowing (SLB), and interest rate derivatives, will remain shut for the day. 

 


The commodity derivatives segment will remain closed for the morning session (9 AM to 5 PM), while it will remain open for the evening session (5 PM to 11:30/11:55 PM).

 


Trading on the NSE and the BSE will resume on Monday, May 4, 2026. 

 


This month, markets will have one more trading holiday on May 28, 2026, in observance of Bakri Id.

 
 


Most major Asian equity markets are closed on May 1 in observance of Labour Day, including those in China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Mauritius, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

 


European markets are also shut for the holiday, with exchanges in France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Poland, among others, not trading today.

 


However, stock markets in the UK and the US are open and will resume trading at their usual time.


Standard trading hours


Under normal conditions, Indian bourses operate Monday through Friday, with the primary trading session running from 9:15 AM to 3:30 PM, following a 15-minute pre-open window at 9:00 AM.


Here is the complete list of Indian Stock Market Holidays in 2026:

 


Upcoming Q4 results

Jindal Steel, Zen Technologie, Ramkrishna Forgings, Filatex India, Punjab Chemicals and Crop Protection, KRM Ayurveda, Magnus Steel and Infra, and Kinetic Trust will announce their quarterly results on May 1.

 


Kotak Mahindra Bank, Avenue Supermarts, APL Apollo Tubes, Central Depository Services, Netweb Technologies, India Shelter and Finance Corporation, LG Balakrishnan and Brothers, Epigral, Rhetan TMT, SMC Global Securities, IKIO Technologies, Monolithisch India, and Swastika Investmart, among others, will announce their quarterly earnings on Saturday, May 2.


Stock Market recap – April 30


Indian equity benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, settled sharply lower on Thursday, April 30, as a surge in oil prices and hawkish US Federal Reserve commentary weighed on investor sentiment.

 


The BSE Sensex fell 582.86 points or 0.75 per cent to close at 76,913.5, after hitting an intraday low of 76,258. The NSE Nifty dropped 180 points or 0.74 per cent to 23,997.55, with an intraday low of 23,796.85.

 


In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 index fell around 1 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 was down 0.48 per cent. 

 


On the sectoral front, barring Nifty IT and Pharma, all other indices settled in the red. The Nifty Metal index fell 2.12 per cent, followed by FMCG, PSU Bank, Realty, and Consumer Durables, down over 1 per cent each. Among others, Nifty Auto, Bank, Financial Services, Media, Healthcare, and Oil & Gas settled lower. 



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Adani Ports Q4 net profit rises 10% on strong revenue, cargo growth

Adani Ports Q4 net profit rises 10% on strong revenue, cargo growth



Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone’s (APSEZ) recorded a 10.44 per cent jump in net profit to ₹3,329 crore for the fourth quarter of the financial year 2025-26 (Q4FY26), backed by higher earnings across domestic and international ports, logistics, and marine verticals as well as an increase in cargo handled by the company. 

 


Revenue from domestic ports increased 26 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to ₹10,738 crore. Revenue from international ports jumped 58 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹1,422 crore. Revenue from logistics rose 10 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹1,133 crore and that from marine zoomed 101 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹726 crore). 

 
 


APSEZ’s overall revenue from operations for the quarter under review stood at ₹10,737.6 crore, up 26.5 per cent Y-o-Y. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) grew 20 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹6,020 crore at a margin of 56 per cent.

 


The company exceeded Bloomberg analysts’ poll estimate expectations for Q4FY26 profit of ₹3,159.9 crore. It also topped the analysts’ revenue estimate of ₹9,683 crore. 

 


Sequentially, APSEZ’s revenue grew by 10.64 per cent, while profit increased by about 9.02 per cent. Its shares listed on the BSE closed at ₹1,655.15 per equity share on Thursday.

 


In Q4FY26, APSEZ handled a cargo volume of 133.4 million metric tonnes (mmt), up 13 per cent Y-o-Y. The company’s domestic volume remained flat Y-o-Y at 111.7 mt, versus 111.9 mt in Q4FY26. However, APSEZ’s international volume jumped 262 per cent Y-o-Y to 21.7 mt.

 


The company’s all-India market share declined by 30 basis points (bps) during the quarter, while its all-India container market share and rail volumes dipped by 110 bps and 1 per cent, respectively.

 


For FY26, APSEZ’s revenue stood at ₹38,735.77 crore, up 27.1 per cent Y-o-Y, while its profit for the same period stood at ₹12,806.21 crore, up 15.45 per cent Y-o-Y. Ebitda stood at ₹22,851 crore, up 20 per cent Y-o-Y. In FY26, the company handled a cargo of 500.8 mmt, up 11 per cent Y-o-Y.

 


The company spent ₹15,320 crore in capex during FY26.

 


The company beat its revenue guidance of ₹38,000 crore for FY26, Ebitda guidance of ₹22,800 crore, and capex guidance of ₹11,000 crore to 12,000 crore. The company, however, fell short of its port cargo volume guidance which was set at 505 to 515 mmt.

 


“Our strong performance during the quarter underscores the resilience of our business model and the disciplined execution of our strategy. Despite the geopolitical volatility and ongoing global tariff uncertainty, we surpassed our FY26 guidance, led by record 500 mmt port cargo volumes. Logistics and Marine businesses also grew rapidly at 55 per cent and 134 per cent, respectively during the year,” said Ashwani Gupta, whole-time director and chief executive officer, APSEZ.

 


FY27 guidance

 


The company aims to handle 1 billion mt of cargo annually by 2030. Its current cargo handling capacity stands at 653 mt per annum. 

 


“APSEZ has built a strong platform to more than double revenue and Ebitda by FY31. This is underpinned by us reaching one billion tonnes of port cargo by December 2030, rapid scale-up of asset-light & assetzero services, and expansion of marine fleet. Disciplined capital allocation will ensure that future capex is funded via internal accruals, while preserving flexibility for selective inorganic growth,” Gupta added.

 


The company has guided its FY27 revenue to be ₹43,000 crore to 45,000 crore (up 11-16 per cent Y-o-Y), Ebitda at ₹25,000 crore to 26,000 crore (up 9-14 per cent Y-o-Y), and capex at ₹12,000 crore to 14,000 crore. 

 


For net debt-to-Ebitda, the company aims to stand at within 2.5x limit for FY27. APSEZ’s net debt as of March 31, 2025 was ₹42,910 crore, while its net debt-to-equity stood at 1.9x. The company reported a cash balance of ₹12,193 crore.



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Rupee hits fresh low past 95/$ as oil surge pushes bond yields above 7%

Rupee hits fresh low past 95/$ as oil surge pushes bond yields above 7%



The rupee hit a fresh low against the dollar, while yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond surged past 7 per cent-mark on Thursday, tracking the rise in crude oil prices amid the West Asia crisis, said dealers. 


Latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed its net short position in the forward book crossed $100 billion, which in turn could exert pressure on the spot rupee.

 


The currency hit the day’s low of 95.34 per dollar before recovering on the back of intervention by the RBI via dollar sales, said dealers.

 


It settled at a new closing low for the second straight session at 94.92 per dollar against the previous close of 94.85 per dollar. The rupee breached the 95 per dollar mark for the first time on March 30, 2026.

 
 


On the other hand, the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond rose up to 7.07 per cent during the day. It settled at 7.02 per cent, against the previous close of 6.99 per cent tracking the softening in crude oil prices by the end of the domestic trading hours, said dealers.

 


“Brent topping $120 per barrel caused panic, resulting in rupee hitting all time lows against the dollar,” said Abhishek Goenka, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of IFA Global.


“The correlation between Brent and the rupee is likely to get stronger, the higher Brent goes. The real macro risk is currently under-appreciated, we believe. While Brent prices we see are financial futures, the spot rate, i.e., procuring a real physical barrel of crude is much higher. Freight rates have shot up and so have insurance costs. All this makes the situation extremely grim and rupee is just reflecting that,” Goenka added.

 


Brent crude oil prices rose up to $126 per barrel as US President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s offer to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. He said that he won’t lift the naval blockade until he secures a nuclear deal.

 


The rupee depreciated 4 per cent in March following the West Asia conflict, prompting the regulator to announce measures to curb speculative trades and volatility. As the impact of the measures faded along with a partial rollback of those steps, the Indian unit came under pressure again, falling 0.11 per cent in April. In 2026 so far, the rupee has depreciated 5.31 per cent against the dollar.

 


The RBI’s outstanding net short dollar position in the rupee forward market rose to $103.06 billion by the end of March, against $77.25 billion by the end of February, latest data by the central bank showed.

 


“Until the RBI unwinds its forward positions, FII inflows are unlikely to return. And without capital flows, the rupee will remain under pressure. In this environment, given the ongoing geopolitical tensions, the RBI’s forward book, and continued capital outflows, rupee will continue to remain under pressure,” said Amit Pabari, managing director at CR Forex.

 


Short positions in less than one year rose to $51 billion, against $28 billion earlier, while those in longer than one year tenure rose by around $3 billion to $52.8 billion during the same period.

 


Experts said that the rupee is expected to remain under pressure driven by a widening current account deficit and subdued capital inflows. Additionally, the import cover, when adjusted to include the forward book, has fallen to below nine months as of March 2026, limiting the buffer against external shocks.

 


“We continue to expect the rupee to depreciate, led by wider current account deficit and weak capital flows. RBI’s ability to use dollar sales to limit depreciation pressure is less due to elevated large forward book. Moreover, the import cover (forex reserves plus forward book) is less than 9 months in March 2026,” said Gaura Sen Gupta, economist at IDFC First Bank.



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