As dozens of flights to and from Indonesia’s resort island of Bali were cancelled on Wednesday after Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano erupted, Air India flight AI2145 from Delhi to Bali was advised to return to Delhi in the interest of passenger safety, the airline said.

The eruption occurred on the eastern island of Flores, where the 1,584-metre volcano forced authorities to raise its alert status to the highest level on Indonesia’s four-tier scale.

As the Air India spokesperson said, the AI2145 flight safely landed back in Delhi, and all passengers disembarked.

“Inconvenience caused to passengers is sincerely regretted, and every effort has been made to minimise it by providing hotel accommodation to the affected passengers. Full refunds on cancellation or complimentary rescheduling have also been offered to them if opted,” said the spokesperson.

According to Bali airport operator Angkasa Pura Indonesia, “Due to volcano activity of Lewatobi Laki-Laki in East Nusa Tenggara, several flights at I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport are cancelled”.

The domestic benchmark indices opened lower on Wednesday amid rising geopolitical tensions, but turned green in the early trade as buying was seen in the auto, IT and PSU bank sectors.

At around 9.32 am, Sensex was trading 160.49 points or 0.20 per cent up at 81,743.79 while the Nifty added 57.40 point or 0.23 per cent at 24,910.80.

Nifty Bank was up 33 points or 0.06 per cent at 55,747.15 The Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading at 58,358.95 after dropping 20.35 points or 0.03 per cent. Nifty Smallcap 100 index was at 18,412.80 after declining 7.55 points or 0.04 per cent.

According to analysts, the market's hopes for de-escalation in in the Middle East war faded, as US President Donald Trump called for ‘Unconditional Surrender’ from Iran. Latest posts by Trump and the US defence movements in West Asia signal aggravation of the conflict, said market experts.

However, there is no panic in global equity markets and it appears that the markets’ assessment is that this conflict will end soon without impacting the global economy," added Dr VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited.

Arisinfra Solutions Limited, a company that provides procurement solutions for infrastructure and construction firms, is launching its initial public offering (IPO) on June 18 to raise nearly Rs 500 crore from the primary market.

However, the company is entering the market at a time when its financial performance has shown signs of stress. According to its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), Arisinfra Solutions posted a net loss of Rs 17.3 crore, widening from a loss of Rs 15.39 crore in FY23.

The company's total income also declined 6.9 per cent year-on-year (YoY), falling to Rs 702.36 crore from Rs 754.44 crore in the previous fiscal (FY23).

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Tuesday announced it has received approval from capital markets regulator SEBI to change the expiry day for equity derivatives contracts from Thursday to Tuesday.

This move is part of a broader effort to streamline expiry days across exchanges and reduce volatility. The new expiry schedule will come into effect from September 1, 2025.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has also been given the go-ahead to continue with Thursday as its expiry day from Tuesday.

The exchange had proposed Thursday as its preferred settlement day, and SEBI has accepted the suggestion.

Both exchanges shared official circulars outlining the changes following SEBI's directive issued in May.

The Indian stock markets closed lower on Tuesday after a weak trading session, as escalating geopolitical tensions and concerns over inflation due to high crude oil prices kept investors on edge.

The cautious mood came after US President Donald Trump issued a strong warning to Iran, saying Tehran should have opted for a nuclear deal with the United States amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Both the benchmarks opened flat and briefly moved higher, but quickly lost momentum as selling pressure intensified through the session.

The Sensex fell by 212.85 points to settle at 81,583.30, after touching an intra-day low of 81,427. The Nifty also ended lower by 93.10 points, closing at 24,853.40.

In a series of cancellations, Air India on Tuesday announced the axing of Flight AI 143 from Delhi to Paris, after mandatory pre-flight checks identified an issue "which is being presently addressed".

Consequently, "flight AI 142 from Paris to Delhi on June 18, 2025, also stands cancelled", the carrier said in a statement.

"In view of the flight coming under the restrictions on night operations at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport, the said flight has been cancelled. We regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers and are making alternative arrangements to fly them to their destination at the earliest," the statement read.

The carrier further stated that they are providing hotel accommodation and also offering full refunds on cancellations or complimentary rescheduling if opted for by the passengers.

The Indian stock markets continued their upward journey in May, supported by a strong economic backdrop and broad-based buying across sectors, a new report said on Tuesday.

The Indian equities outperformed several global peers, particularly in the mid- and small-cap segments, driven by solid macro fundamentals and improving investor sentiment, according to PL Asset Management’s latest report.

Siddharth Vora, Head of Quant Investment Strategies at PL Asset Management, said India’s solid economic fundamentals and improved global sentiment offer a positive environment for investors.

“India’s resilient macroeconomic landscape, coupled with improving global sentiment, presents a constructive backdrop for equity investors,” Vora added.

India remains a bright spot for investment globally in the third quarter this year (Q3 2025), backed by resilient domestic consumption, favourable trade dynamics and supportive monetary policy, an HSBC Global Private Banking report said on Tuesday, adding that India’s GDP is projected to grow at 6.2 per cent in 2025, making it the fastest-growing major economy.

HSBC said in its latest investment outlook that it retains a mild overweight on Indian equities and local currency bonds. Within equities, it prefers large-cap stocks and favours more domestically oriented sectors and favour the financials, healthcare and industrial sectors.

“India’s economic resilience, underpinned by strong domestic consumption, favourable trade dynamics, and accommodative monetary policy, sets the stage for a promising second half of 2025,” the report noted.

Oil prices rose sharply on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump called for the evacuation of Tehran, raising fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.

The prices jumped initially but later eased as the market stayed cautious about any major disruption in oil supplies.

Brent crude oil went up by as much as 2.2 per cent before falling slightly to trade just above $73 a barrel.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) also rose and hovered near $72. This comes after oil prices had dropped on Monday when there were signs that Iran was trying to calm tensions.

However, Israel has continued its military strikes, which began last Friday, targeting key nuclear sites in Iran.

The oil market is closely watching the Strait of Hormuz -- a narrow waterway that plays a crucial role in global oil trade.

The Indian benchmark indices opened lower on Tuesday amid weak Asian cues as selling was seen in the auto, IT and pharma sectors in the early trade.

At around 9.28 am, Sensex was trading 186.35 points or 0.23 per cent down at 81,609.80 while the Nifty declined 68.20 point or 0.27 per cent at 24,878.30

Nifty Bank was down 30.10 points or 0.05 per cent at 55,914.80. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading at 58,732.10 after dropping 36.40 points or 0.06 per cent. Nifty Smallcap 100 index was at 18,482.90 after declining 66.30 points or 0.36 per cent.

According to analysts, US President Donald Trump's latest comments on Iran kept investors on edge regarding the geopolitical outlook.

Despite the escalation of the Iran-Israel conflict, stock markets are steady and resilient. The decline in the US volatility index CBOE suggests that markets are unlikely to correct sharply unless the conflict takes a dramatic turn for the worse, said market experts.