TOKYO, – Oil prices climbed on Monday on continuing fears of supply losses because of shipping disruptions in the key Middle East producing region from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

Brent crude futures rose $1.71, or 1.6%, to $110.74 a barrel by 0057 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained $0.71, or 0.6%, to trade at $112.25 per barrel.

On Thursday, the last trading day before the Good Friday holiday break, WTI ‌settled up more ⁠than 11% ⁠and Brent soared nearly 8% in volatile trading, recording their biggest absolute price increase since 2020, as U.S. President Donald Trump promised to continue attacks on Iran.

The Strait of Hormuz, which carries oil and petroleum products from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, remains largely closed by Iranian attacks on shipping after the war began on February 28.

Because of the Middle East supply disruptions, refiners are seeking alternative sources for crude, particularly for physical ⁠cargoes in ‌the U.S. and the UK North Sea.

“Global buyers are bidding aggressively for (U.S.) Gulf Coast barrels and Brent is rallying even faster,” the Schork Group said in ⁠a client note on Monday.
On Sunday, Trump ratcheted up pressure on Tehran, threatening in an expletive-laden Easter Sunday social media post to target Iran’s power plants and bridges on Tuesday if the strategic Strait of Hormuz is not reopened. Still, some vessels, including an Omani-operated tanker, a French-owned container ship and a Japanese-owned gas carrier, crossed the Strait of Hormuz since Thursday, shipping data showed, reflecting Iran’s policy to allow passage for vessels from countries it deems friendly.

The war threatens to linger on as Iran ‌has officially told mediators it is not prepared to meet with U.S. officials in the Pakistani capital Islamabad in coming days and efforts to produce a ceasefire have reached a dead end, ⁠the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

On Sunday, OPEC+, consisting of some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, agreed to a modest rise of 206,000 barrels per day for May.

However, that decision will largely exist on paper as several of the group’s key producers are unable to raise output due to the war.

Russian supply has been disrupted recently by Ukrainian drone attacks on its Baltic Sea export terminal. Media reports on Sunday said its Ust-Luga terminal resumed loadings on Saturday after days of disruptions.

Trump wrote: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP”.

More pain awaits Indian banks stocks — the biggest component of the country’s stock market — as the central bank’s moves in the currency market and growth shock to the economy from rising energy prices dent profit outlook.

The Reserve Bank of India’s defense of a record-low rupee has constrained its ability to inject liquidity, tightening financial conditions that are likely to weigh on banks over the coming quarters. A prolonged conflict in the Middle East also risks derailing India’s nascent credit recovery, threatening loan growth as the broader economy cools.

Global investors withdrew a record 327 billion rupees ($3.5 billion) from shares of financial services companies in the first fortnight of March, according to National Securities Depository Ltd. data. The Nifty Bank Index has lost $95 billion in market value since the start of March, narrowly avoiding a bear market — defined as a 20% drop from a recent high.

“There could be further pressure on these stocks in the short-to-medium term as monetary policy can remain tight,” Kranthi Bathini, an equity strategist at WealthMills Securities, said, adding that valuations are becoming attractive after the correction.

At stake is the outlook for India’s $4.5 trillion stock market, given banks account for nearly a third of the benchmark index. A sustained weakness in shares of lenders could undermine a broader market that is already among the worst performers in the region, down 13% for the year.

Bulls point to improving valuation multiples for bank stocks and India’s long-term economic growth, which remains among the fastest globally. The Nifty Bank Index trades at 1.5 times one-year forward price-to-book, its cheapest level since 2020, signaling an attractive risk-reward profile.
Citibank Inc. is already prioritizing private-sector banks over state-run lenders, betting that the former can better absorb the macroeconomic stress that is now the prime concern for investors.Still, Jefferies estimates banks could face as much as 50 billion rupees from unwinding their currency trades due to diktats of the central bank. Fitch Ratings sees net interest margins of lenders shrinking 20-30 basis points in the year ending March 2027 — potentially undershooting the credit rating agency’s 3.1% forecast — as tighter financial conditions weigh.

“Banks will definitely take some hit on their investment book,” said Rajat Agarwal, an Asia strategist at Societe Generale SA. “We recently saw a pickup in credit growth — what remains to be seen is how much of that gets pushed back” by the war, he said.

ET Intelligence Group: FY26 was a challenging year for the primary equity market, with most initial public offerings (IPOs) failing to earn returns since listing till March 31 amid heightened volatility. While geopolitical tensions in West Asia and weakening rupee amid the exodus of foreign investors affected the overall equity performance, there were a select few IPOs that managed to stay in the green. Of the 109 mainboard IPOs that were listed in FY26, 32 or one out of three IPOs posted positive returns while 16 IPOs yielded double-digit returns over the listing price. This also implies that by and large, the primary equity market did not earn returns after listing.

Among the top gainers were electric bikes maker Ather Energy (139% return), auto ancillary manufacturer Belrise Industries (98%), and Aditya Infotech (78%), which provides video surveillance solutions.

Instead of listing price, if offer price is considered, then the proportion of companies improves – 37 IPOs generated returns while 31 yielded double-digit returns. The same three companies made it to the top three slots. Aditya Infotech took the lead with 168% return over the offer price while Ather Energy and Belrise gained 143% and 116%.

It was also the year when majority of the large IPOs based on the issue size or money raised failed to generate returns. Only a quarter of the top 12 IPOs – four to be precise – earned returns. These include Lenskart and Groww generating 26% return each, followed by 11% return by ICICI Prudential AMC and 8% by Tenneco Clean Air India.
Among the worst performing IPOs of FY26 were steel products maker VMS TMT, which fell 62% from the listing price followed by construction company Highway Infrastructure and renewable energy equipment provider Solarworld Energy Solutions which lost 60% each.