Indian stock markets witnessed a sharp fall on Wednesday as rising tensions in the Middle East hurt investor confidence. The BSE Sensex dropped more than 1,700 points during intraday trade, falling over 2%. At 2:40 pm, the Sensex was trading at 76,416. The NSE Nifty 50 also declined by more than 500 points to 23,865.
The market sell-off followed fresh geopolitical concerns after the US military launched attacks on Iran. The situation became more uncertain after US President Donald Trump said the interim agreement with Iran was over, although he added that talks could continue.
The Indian rupee also weakened by 0.26% against the US dollar to 95.2150. Higher crude oil prices and weak global sentiment added pressure on domestic markets.
Selling was seen across all major sectors. Bank, auto, FMCG, oil and gas, and chemical stocks recorded the biggest losses. Shriram Finance, Jio Financial Services, IndiGo, Maruti Suzuki, and Indian Oil Corporation were among the top losers.
Meanwhile, ONGC, Cummins India, Bajaj Auto, Lodha Developers, Torrent Pharma, and Adani Energy Solutions traded with gains despite the broader market weakness.