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Foreign investors withdrew Rs 52,704 crore (approximately USD 5.73 billion) from domestic equities in the first fortnight of March amid escalating tensions in West Asia, the depreciation of the rupee, and concerns over the impact of high crude oil prices on India's growth and corporate earnings. The latest sell-off comes after foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) infused Rs 22,615 crore into Indian equities in February, the highest monthly inflow in 17 months. Prior to that, FPIs were net sellers for three consecutive months, withdrawing Rs 35,962 crore in January, Rs 22,611 crore in December and Rs 3,765 crore in November, according to depository data. So far in March (until March 13), FPIs have sold equities worth about Rs 52,704 crore in the cash market and remained net sellers on all trading days during the month. Market experts attributed the pullout mainly to rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia. Vaqarjaved Khan, Senior Fundamental Analyst at Angel One, said escalating ..
Asserting that the joint US-Israel campaign against Iran is "going better than expected" and Israel is "stronger than ever", Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said there was "no life insurance" for Iran's newly chosen Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Responding to a question about whether Israel would target Khamenei and Hezbollah leader Naem Qassem, Netanyahu said, "I wouldn't take out a life insurance policy on any of the leaders of the terror organisations." Mojtaba's father, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in joint US-Israel strikes on February 28. Israel launched its campaign dubbed "Roaring Lion" on February 28 against Iran, which was joined by the US which gave it the name "Epic Fury", with the claimed objective of "foiling Iran's nuclear ambitions, dismantling its missile programme and delivering a crushing blow to its regional proxies". On the topic of toppling the regime in Iran, the Israeli prime minister said that the US and
Israel on Sunday claimed that the headquarters of the dreaded Iranian "Prevention Police", infamous for moral policing, has been destroyed. "On International Women's Day, a symbol of oppression falls. The headquarters of Iran's 'Prevention Police', notorious for torturing Iranian women, has been destroyed," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said on its X handle. "For years it was a place of fear for Iranian women. Today, it's gone," it added. The death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman, in Iranian police custody in 2022 had sparked widespread protests across the Islamic Republic.
The Iran war exploded further late on Saturday as pillars of flame rose above an oil storage facility in Tehran and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised "many surprises" for the next phase of the week-old conflict. Iranian state media confirmed the strike as Associated Press video showed the horizon glowing against the night sky. Israel's military confirmed new strikes that shook neighbourhoods in Tehran's east and south but did not immediately comment on targets. It appeared to be the first time a civil industrial facility has been targeted in the war. State media blamed "an attack from the US and the Zionist regime" at the facility that supplies the capital and neighbouring provinces in the north. Earlier in the day, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian apologised for attacks on "neighbouring countries", even as its missiles and drones flew toward Gulf Arab states and hard-liners asserted that Tehran's war strategy would not budge. A rift between more pragmatic ...
Israel launched a series of strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut on Thursday after ordering all residents of the densely populated area to evacuate. Traffic was gridlocked in Lebanon's capital on Thursday as panicked residents tried to flee after Israel's military issued an evacuation notice telling residents to "save your lives and evacuate your homes immediately," and specified which routes they should take to escape. Hours later, strikes began to hit the Beirut suburbs. Since the resurgence of hostilities between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group, Israel has struck sites in Beirut's suburbs and issued a blanket warning for residents south of the Litani River - an area in southern Lebanon stretching to the border with Israel - to evacuate their homes, but had not previously issued a blanket evacuation order for Beirut's southern suburbs. After the attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran triggered a new war in the Middle East, Hezbollah launched missiles and dro
The government on Saturday reviewed the preparedness of aviation stakeholders in the wake of the evolving Middle East situation and asked airlines to ensure timely rerouting, diversion of flights wherever required in accordance with safety protocols. Multiple airspaces have been closed in the wake of the attacks on Iran by Israel and the US. With Indian airlines suspending their Middle East operations and thousands of passengers facing travel disruptions, civil aviation minister K Rammohan Naidu held a high-level review meeting with the stakeholders. At the meeting, the ministry told airlines to ensure timely rerouting and diversion of flights wherever required in accordance with safety protocols. The review meeting of the civil aviation ministry focused on ensuring passenger safety, operational continuity, and real-time coordination amid airspace closures in the Middle East, according to an official release. Airport operators have been asked to enhance coordination with airlines