A surprise attack by Iran-backed Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, on Israel this past weekend has ignited geopolitical tensions. Moreover, higher oil prices would increase inflation pressure and further weaken the Rupee, thus making gold an attractive investment option. This could drive up gold prices domestically.

The impact of the war is set to be seen across the globe, including India. Gold prices have already begun to rise on increased haven demand amid tensions ramping up in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel. The precious metal gained as much as 1.2% today, as financial markets brace for headwinds and volatility from the shock attack by Gaza militants, as per a Bloomberg report.

Gold rate today, as per a Mint report, is witnessing strong buying interest due to rising uncertainty after the Israel- Palestine conflict. Gold price today on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) opened higher at ₹57,000 per 10 gm levels and went on to hit an intraday high of 57,400 levels within a few minutes of the commodity market's opening bell today.

As far as oil prices are concerned, they have surged as much as 5% the broadest and bloodiest attack on Israel in decades. Brent crude - the global oil benchmark — jumped 4.94% to $88.76 a barrel on Monday. This bodes ill for India's state-run oil marketing companies (OMCs) which have been forced to keep the retail fuel prices unchanged ahead of the general elections in 2024.

On Monday, shares of Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp are all down around 2-3%.

Investors must brace for sharp swings in the equity market this week amid the unexpected escalation of the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, as per ET.