New Delhi, March 2 Defence stocks such as Ideaforge Technology and Paras Defence closed higher on Monday amid escalating tensions in the Middle East following a US and Israeli attack on Iran.
Shares of Ideaforge Technology rose by 7.66 per cent, Paras Defence and Space Technologies surged by 5.95 per cent, Bharat Electronics climbed by 2.09 per cent, Astra Microwave Products advanced by 1.62 per cent, Taneja Aerospace & Aviation jumped by 1.34 per cent, Hindustan Aeronautics rose by 0.96 per cent, and Bharat Dynamics (0.22 per cent) on the BSE.
During intra-day trading, Ideaforge Tech soared by 15.11 per cent, Paras Defence jumped by 13.14 per cent, Astra Microwave surged by 4.97 per cent, Taneja Aerospace rallied by 4.40 per cent, Bharat Dynamics rose by 4 per cent, Bharat Electronics climbed by 2.77 per cent, and Hindustan Aeronautics (1.75 per cent).
In the equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex plunged by 2,743.46 points or 3.37 per cent to 78,543.73 in early trade. It later closed at 80,238.85, down by 1,048.34 points or 1.29 per cent.
The 50-share NSE Nifty tumbled by 575.15 points or 2.28 per cent to 24,603.50 in intra-day trading. The benchmark later settled down by 312.95 points or 1.24 per cent at 24,865.70.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a coordinated US-Israeli airstrike on Tehran early Saturday, with the Iranian state media confirming his death on Sunday.
Iran began firing missiles at Israel and Arab countries in the region in retaliation for the killing of its supreme leader.
