Sensex sinks 1,313 points in broad market selloff; Titan, SBI among top drags

Indian equity markets witnessed a sharp selloff on Monday, with benchmark indices tumbling amid broad-based weakness across consumer durables, PSU banks, oil & gas, and realty stocks, while investor sentiment remained fragile due to heavy selling in index heavyweights such as Reliance Industries, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel and Titan Company.

The BSE Sensex plunged 1,312.91 points, or 1.70 per cent, to close at 76,015.28, while the NSE Nifty50 dropped 360.30 points, or 1.49 per cent, to settle at 23,815.85. The sharp correction erased nearly Rs 6 lakh crore in investor wealth as market breadth remained decisively negative.

Out of the 30 Sensex constituents, 26 stocks ended in the red, highlighting the intensity of the selloff. Volatility also spiked sharply, with India VIX rising more than 10 per cent, indicating growing nervousness among traders.

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Consumer durable stocks emerged as the worst-hit segment of the day, led by a steep decline in jewellery counters after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for reduced gold purchases. Shares of Titan Company tumbled nearly 7 per cent, becoming one of the top drags on the benchmarks.

PSU banking stocks too came under pressure, with State Bank of India among the major laggards. Weakness in oil & gas and real estate counters further deepened the market rout.

However, the session was not entirely devoid of bright spots. Shares of Tata Consumer Products surged nearly 8 per cent after the company posted strong fourth-quarter earnings, emerging as the top gainer on the Nifty50 index.

Broader markets also mirrored the weak sentiment, with both the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices declining more than 1 per cent each, reflecting widespread risk-off sentiment among investors.

Meanwhile, the weakness extended to the derivatives market as GIFT Nifty ended the afternoon session down 386.5 points, or 1.6 per cent, at 23,831.5, signalling that bearish sentiment continues to persist even after the close of domestic trading.

Market participants are now expected to closely track global cues, commodity price movements, corporate earnings and foreign institutional investor flows for further direction in the coming sessions.