Sensex Slips 1,000 Points A Day After Record Rally, Nifty Down 200 Points

Mumbai:

Indian equity markets crashed this morning, a day after witnessing a record rally due to major geopolitical developments, including India and Pakistan agreeing to a ceasefire and the US and China striking a trade deal.

The benchmarks were already down in the pre-market hours, with Sensex losing over 400 points. The losses expanded over time. Sensex, which represents the top 30 companies listed with the Bombay Stock Exchange, was down over 1,000 points at 10:30 am. NSE Nifty50 also lost over 200 points.

Heavyweights like Infosys, Eternal (Zomato), and HCL Tech were the top losers in the Sensex pack, while Sun Pharma, Tech Mahindra, and SBI Bank were among the gainers.

Experts suggest that the benchmarks will likely consolidate after Monday’s whopping gains. It is being anticipated that buyer interest will continue in small and mid-cap stocks at lower levels, said Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities.

Hardik Matalia, Derivative Analyst, Choice Broking, advised traders to avoid large overnight positions and enforce tight risk controls due to the current global uncertainties.

India and Pakistan announced a ceasefire on Saturday evening, with cross-border firings easing and the border areas seeing relative calm over the last two days. During the conflict, the markets showed extreme resilience and witnessed only limited losses. India’s clear superiority in warfare and its inherent resilience, supported by global and domestic macros, worked in its favour, according to experts.

Most Asian stock markets were trading in the green too, including Tokyo, Bangkok, Seoul, and Shanghai. Only Hong Kong was in red.

The Indian markets had rallied over 3.5% the previous day, with Sensex rising nearly 3,000 points. Nifty had added another 917 points. Even Asian stocks performed well and contributed to the global gains.

Later in the evening, US markets posted a solid rise as the two economic superpowers appeared to step back from a punishing trade war. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 2.8% while S&P 500 went up 3.3% and the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index ended 4.4% higher.