Stock market crashes, investors lose nearly ₹12 lakh crore

Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu): After three consecutive sessions of gains, the Indian stock market witnessed a sharp decline on Thursday, ending with heavy losses. Concerns over rising crude oil prices, weak global markets and the US Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged led to a major sell-off in domestic equities.

The benchmark indices fell over 3 percent each. The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 3.26 percent or 2,496.89 points to close at 74,207.24. Similarly, the NSE Nifty fell 3.26 percent or 775.65 points to settle at 23,002.15.

During intraday trade, the Sensex opened at 74,750.92 and plunged by as much as 2,753 points or 3.6 percent to touch a low of 73,950.95. The Nifty opened at 23,197.75 and slipped 847 points or 3.5 percent to hit a day’s low of 22,930.35.

Broader markets also mirrored the sharp fall. The Nifty Midcap index declined by 3.19 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap index dropped 2.94 percent.

All sectoral indices ended in the red. The Nifty Auto index saw the steepest fall of 4.25 percent, followed by Nifty Realty (3.81 percent), Nifty Financial Services (3.78 percent), Nifty Private Bank (3.41 percent), Nifty IT (3.31 percent), Nifty Metal (3.24 percent) and Nifty FMCG (2.53 percent).

Among Nifty50 stocks, only ONGC registered gains of 1.55 percent, while all other stocks ended lower. Shriram Finance (down 6.71 percent), Eternal (down 5.38 percent) and HDFC Bank (down 5.11 percent) were among the top losers. Other major losers included Bajaj Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, L&T, IndiGo, Grasim, Trent and Bajaj Auto.

The sharp fall in the Sensex led to a significant erosion in investor wealth. The total market capitalization of BSE-listed companies declined by nearly ₹12 lakh crore, falling from around ₹438 lakh crore to approximately ₹426 lakh crore.