New Delhi, March 9 -- When stock markets tank, intrepid investors troop in to buy the dip. This time, though, the signs are missing.

With the Iran attack widening into a regional conflict, investor sentiment remains significantly subdued, raising the possibility of further market declines. The flare-up threatens to block crude oil supplies from the region, and fuel a spike in energy prices.

The lack of interest among bulls is reflected by a sharp fall in the cumulative value of marketwide call options (index and stocks) relative to marketwide put options since the war began last Saturday. This, in turn, indicates investors are not buying the dip, a diversion from past occasions, and raises the chances of the Nifty falling as much as 2.7...