Sensex crashes over 1,000 points; Nifty tumbles 359 points in late sell-off

Indian benchmark equity indices witnessed a sharp late-session sell-off on Friday as the BSE Sensex plunged 1,092.05 points, or 1.44 per cent, to close at 74,775.74, while the Nifty 50 dropped 359.40 points, or 1.50 per cent, to settle at 23,547.75.

Markets traded in a relatively narrow range for most of the session before witnessing a sudden collapse in the final hour of trade. At one point, the Sensex was down nearly 1,300 points, while the Nifty slipped to an intraday low of around 23,485.

The sharp decline wiped out approximately ₹6 lakh crore from investors' wealth, with the total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies falling to around ₹465 lakh crore from nearly Rs 471 lakh crore in the previous session.

Selling pressure was widespread, with 43 of the 50 Nifty constituents ending in the red. Among the biggest losers were Power Grid Corporation of India, InterGlobe Aviation, and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation.

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In contrast, the IT sector provided some support to the market. Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, and Wipro emerged as the top gainers on the Nifty. Sectorally, the weakness was broad-based. Except for the Nifty IT index, which gained 0.60 per cent, all major sectoral indices ended lower. Oil & Gas, Metals, Auto, Healthcare and Consumer Durables stocks declined by up to 2 per cent. Banking and financial shares also remained under pressure, with the Bank Nifty, Nifty Private Bank, Financial Services, FMCG and Pharma indices losing more than 1 per cent each.

Why did the market fall?

Market experts attributed the sharp decline primarily to profit booking ahead of the weekend amid uncertainty surrounding a possible agreement between the United States and Iran.

Reports indicated that Washington and Tehran had reached an understanding to extend their ceasefire and resume shipping through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, with the agreement awaiting approval from US President Donald Trump. The development prompted investors to reduce risk exposure amid concerns over potential volatility in global energy markets.

Another factor weighing on sentiment was the revised monsoon outlook from the India Meteorological Department. The weather agency said India is likely to receive 90 per cent of its Long Period Average (LPA) rainfall during the southwest monsoon season, lower than earlier expectations.

A weaker monsoon raises concerns over rural demand, agricultural output and inflation, prompting caution among investors. With global uncertainties persisting and domestic growth indicators under close scrutiny, analysts expect markets to remain volatile in the near term as investors assess geopolitical risks, monsoon progress and upcoming economic data.