New Delhi, 30 March (H.S.):

Equity markets across the world are trading under pressure on Monday, March 30, as fears of further escalation in the West Asian war and the growing involvement of Houthi rebels weigh on investor sentiment. Major indices in the United States, Europe and Asia are all showing signs of weakness, with deep falls in several key Asian markets and muted gains in only a handful of indexes.

US equity markets under strain

Wall Street closed sharply lower in the previous session, with both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq ending in the red under sustained selling pressure. The S&P 500 slipped 108.31 points, or 1.67 percent, to close at 6,368.85, while the Nasdaq plunged 459.72 points, or 2.15 percent, to 20,948.36, reflecting heightened risk aversion amid the ongoing conflict and elevated oil prices.

Looking ahead to the current session, Dow Jones futures are trading slightly weaker, down about 0.03 percent at 45,154.57, indicating that the US market is set to tread cautiously amid continued geopolitical uncertainty and inflation‑linked concerns.

European bourses also ended the last trading session in negative territory, as the broader risk‑off tone spilled over from the Middle Eastern crisis. The FTSE 100 in the UK fell 0.05 percent to 9,967.35, while France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.87 percent to 7,701.95. Germany’s DAX recorded a sharper drop, losing 312.22 points, or 1.40 percent, to close at 22,300.75, reflecting worries over energy‑cost shocks and the global growth outlook.

Across Asia, the mood on Monday, March 30, is broadly negative, with eight out of nine major indices trading in the red while only one holds positive ground. The Nikkei 225 in Japan is among the biggest laggards, down 1,791.07 points, or 3.36 percent, at 51,582, as the regional conflict and soaring crude prices hurt earnings visibility for export‑oriented firms.

South Korea’s KOSPI has also come under heavy pressure, shedding 148.50 points, or 2.73 percent, to 5,290.37, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 228.88 points, or 0.92 percent, to 24,723. Taiwan’s Weighted Index lost 502.36 points, or 1.52 percent, to 32,610.23, and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite Index slipped 0.59 percent to 7,055.45. Thailand’s SET Index and Singapore’s Straits Times Index are also in the red, down 0.15 percent at 1,444.84 and 0.11 percent at 4,892.77, respectively.

The lone exception in the region is the Shanghai Composite Index, which managed to eke out a marginal gain of 0.23 percent, trading at 3,922.72, thanks to selective domestic‑policy support and sector‑specific buying in select Chinese shares.

India‑linked futures and broader risk‑off tone

In the India‑linked futures segment, the Gift Nifty is down 285.50 points, or 1.25 percent, at 22,541.50, suggesting that the domestic benchmark Nifty 50 is likely to open under pressure on the back of weak global cues.

Analysts say the combination of surging oil prices, renewed geopolitical stress in West Asia and the wider US–Iran–Israel conflict has triggered a broad‑based risk‑off phase, with investors rotating out of growth‑oriented and export‑dependent stocks into relatively safer assets.

As the day progresses, traders will watch for any fresh developments in the Middle East, oil‑price movements and comments from central banks on inflation and interest‑rate policy, all of which could further shape the global risk‑on or risk‑off bias in the near term.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar