Stock market crash today: Continuing geopolitical tensions weighed on Nifty50 and BSE Sensex on Wednesday with the indices tanking over 1%. While Nifty50 went below the 24,000 mark, BSE Sensex crashed over 1,000 points. At 12:14 PM, Nifty50 was trading at 24,012.00, down 250 points or 1.03%. BSE Sensex was at 77,299.07, down 907 points or 1.16%.Among the Sensex constituents, shares of Axis Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank and Bajaj Finserv were the biggest losers, declining between 2 per cent and 4 per cent each. On the other hand, Adani Ports, NTPC, Sun Pharma and Tech Mahindra were among the stocks that recorded gains.Most sectoral indices on the NSE reversed their early gains and moved lower during the session. The Nifty Auto index emerged as the worst performer, dropping nearly 2 per cent, followed by the Nifty Private Bank index which declined more than 1.8 per cent. In contrast, the Nifty Pharma index managed to trade higher, gaining over 1 per cent.
Why is stock market down today? Top reasons
US–Iran warGeopolitical tensions in the Middle East continued to weigh on market sentiment. Despite earlier expectations that the conflict might end soon, the situation in the region remains tense. The United States and Israel carried out what some observers described as the heaviest strikes of the war on Iran, even after US President Donald Trump said on Monday that the conflict could be “over soon”.Iranian authorities warned that state security forces were prepared with “fingers on the trigger” to deal with any resurgence of anti-government protests. Meanwhile, Iran launched attacks targeting several locations in Israel, Lebanon and the Gulf early on Wednesday as the conflict entered its 12th day.The escalation has also revived concerns about a potential prolonged disruption of the Strait of Hormuz, despite earlier assurances from Trump. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has warned that it could block oil shipments passing through the Gulf if the attacks by the United States and Israel continue.Rupee weakensThe Indian rupee opened lower on Wednesday, slipping 0.14 per cent to Rs 91.9350 against the US dollar, compared with its previous close of Rs 91.8050. Market participants are closely monitoring the currency after it touched a record low of Rs 92.35 against the dollar on Monday.“The expected trading range remains between 91.25 and 92.60, with crude price movement and dollar index direction continuing to guide the currency’s near-term trend,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst of Commodity and Currency at LKP Securities.Continued FII outflowsForeign investors remained net sellers of Indian equities on Tuesday as well, offloading shares worth Rs 4,672.64 crore. Although this figure does not reflect their activity for Wednesday, sustained selling by overseas investors over the past several sessions has weighed on overall market sentiment.Market data shows that foreign portfolio investors sold Indian equities worth more than Rs 21,800 crore during the first week of March. This follows a period in February when foreign investors had turned net buyers in the domestic equity market.Profit bookingProfit-taking by investors also appears to have contributed to Wednesday’s market decline. Domestic equities had staged a strong rebound in the previous session, with the Sensex climbing more than 600 points and the Nifty closing above the 24,250 level. The recovery was supported by comments from US President Donald Trump indicating that the conflict with Iran could end soon, along with a sharp drop in oil prices after a prolonged selloff in equities.Trump told CBS News on Monday that he believed the war against Iran “is very complete” and said Washington was “very far ahead” of his earlier estimate of four to five weeks. Following these remarks, crude oil prices fell significantly, dropping below the $90 per barrel mark after previously surging beyond $110 during a strong rally. Oil prices continued to decline on Wednesday, with Brent crude futures trading 82 cents lower at $86.98 per barrel.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
