Sensex, Nifty Fall In Early Trade As Crude Prices, US-Iran Tensions Weigh

Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty drifted lower in early trade on Monday as elevated crude oil prices, escalation in US-Iran hostilities and concerns over a possible US interest rate hike weighed on investors’ sentiment.The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 172.77 points to 76,342.66 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty declined 63.30 points to 23,832.60. Among the 30 Sensex firms, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Steel, Tata Consultancy Services and UltraTech Cement were among the major laggards. Eternal, Bharti Airtel, Bharat Electronics and Larsen & Toubro were among the winners. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded 0.78…