Shares of leading oil marketing companies such as IOC, HPCL, BPCL rallied by up to 5 per cent as US-China trade war fears weighed on global oil prices. IOC, HPCL, BPCL were the top gainers on Nifty index. 

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HPCL gained as much as 4.83 per cent to Rs 268.60, its biggest intraday percentage gain in nearly three weeks. BPCL rose 2.59 per cent to Rs 381, its one-week top, while IOC climbed 3 per cent to Rs 159.80 on the BSE. 

Nifty Energy Index rose over 1 per cent to intraday high of 13,353.35 mark. 

In the international market, oil prices seesawed in a nervous trade as the United States implemented a raft of tariffs on Chinese goods, which should prompt Beijing to retaliate, potentially including a duty on US crude imports. Brent crude futures were down 6 cents, or 0.1 per cent, at $77.33 a barrel.

China has said it will impose tariffs on 545 US goods in return. Meanwhile, major Chinese ports have already delayed clearing goods from the United States, according to several sources.

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As part of the retaliatory response, Beijing has threatened a 25 percent tariff on US crude imports, although it has not specified an introduction date.

American crude shipments to China are around 400,000 barrels per day (bpd), worth $1 billion a month at current prices, reported Reuters. This would make US oil noncompetitive in China.