Sensex-Nifty crash on Iran war fears investors lose ₹8 lakh crore in minutes

Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu): Indian stock markets witnessed heavy selling pressure on Monday as rising tensions between the United States and Iran triggered panic among investors. The BSE Sensex plunged 851 points in early trade to 74,422 while the NIFTY 50 slipped 246 points to 23,392. The sharp fall wiped out nearly ₹8 lakh crore of investors’ wealth within minutes of market opening.

Selling pressure was visible across almost all sectors including realty banking auto energy and financial services. Midcap and smallcap stocks also came under heavy pressure with the Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 indices falling sharply. Among Sensex stocks Infosys Tech Mahindra TCS and Bharti Airtel managed to trade in the green while several major companies including HDFC Bank Tata Steel Maruti Suzuki SBI Bajaj Finance and L&T witnessed losses.

Global weakness also weighed heavily on investor sentiment as most Asian markets including Tokyo Shanghai Hong Kong and Jakarta traded lower. Experts said fears of escalation in the Iran-US conflict pushed crude oil prices sharply higher which increased concerns over inflation and global economic slowdown. Brent crude rose close to 112 dollars per barrel while WTI crude crossed 103 dollars per barrel. Foreign and domestic institutional investors also remained net sellers during the previous trading session adding further pressure on the market.