Sensex slumped 986 points, closing at 72,909.34, its steepest single‑day loss in years. The drop erased almost ₹6 lakh crore from the combined market value of BSE‑listed companies, a figure disclosed in the latest BSE filing.
Nifty50 mirrored the pain, falling 305 points to 22,835.15 for a 1.32% decline when it opened at 22,850. The 30 constituents of Sensex were all in negative territory, with Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank leading the slide.
The rally in crude prices—up 2% to near $107 a barrel—has fed into risk‑off sentiment across Asia, dragging down the Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 by more than 1% each. Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury market pushed the 10‑year yield past 5.2%, its highest level since 2004, and the 30‑year yield crossed 5.5%. These moves have lifted the appeal of debt over equities.
Currency pressure added to the mix; the rupee weakened to 95.89 against the dollar, a 14‑paise slide that has raised concerns about breaching the 96 threshold. According to Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst at LKP Securities, the rupee will likely trade between 95.50 and 96.50 amid persistent commodity and dollar volatility.
Foreign investors continued to pull out, with provisional NSE data showing net FII outflows of ₹3,694 crore on Friday and total equity outflows this month hitting ₹25,682 crore. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, noted that the shift from the positive inflows seen in July and August is now a clear reversal.
Looking ahead, the market remains exposed to geopolitical uncertainty, especially the escalating Iran‑U.S. tensions that could further push oil higher. Traders will watch the forthcoming U.S. Treasury auction results and the RBI’s policy meeting for any signs of tightening. The next key data point will be the industrial production figures due later this week, which could either confirm a slowdown or provide a short‑term rally.