Sensex sinks 1,835 pts, Nifty at 22,512: Monday mayhem costs Rs 13.7 lakh cr to investors

Indian benchmark indices settled sharply lower on Monday, shedding more than 2 per cent each, as the Middle ​East conflict intensified, entering into fourth week, with energy infrastructure under threat, sending oil prices surging and pushing investors to ‌reprice US interest rate cut expectations.

BSE Sensex plunged 1,836.57 points, or 2.46 per cent, to settle at 72,696.39 on Monday, while NSE's Nifty50 index was crashed more than 601.85 points, or 2.60 per cent, to end at 22,512.65 for the day. Broader market indices fell in tandem, eking out 4 per cent each, while fear gauge India VIX spiked more than 17 per cent to hover around 27-levels.

Stock market investors lost more than Rs 13.70 lakh crore of notional wealth on Monday as the market capitalization of the all the BSE listed companies dropped to Rs 4,15,05,411.13 lakh crore, compared to Rs 4,28,76,298.38 lakh crore on Friday.

Domestic markets witnessed a sharp decline, mirroring weakness across Asian markets amid escalating tensions in the Middle East and concerns over potential disruptions to global energy supplies. Investor sentiment turned cautious following Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum to Iran on the Strait of Hormuz, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.

"Rising global bond yields signalled heightened inflation and fiscal concerns, while the rupee falling to a record low further pressured markets and triggered FII outflows. In the near term, markets are likely to remain risk-averse until there is greater clarity on de-escalation, though the correction is offering selective long-term opportunities for investors," he said.

46 of the Nifty50 stocks to settled in red with Titan, Shriram Finance, Trent and Jio Financial Services losing more than 6 per cent each. HDFC Life Insurance, UltraTech Cement, Adani Enterprises, Tata Steel, Bharat Electronics, HDFC Bank, JSW Steel and InterGlobe Aviation dropped 5 per cent each.

Among the gainers, HCL Technologies rose nearly 2 per cent, followed by Power Grid adding nearly a per cent. Tech Mahindra and ONGC were other surprises.  On a sectoral front, Nifty Consumer Durable index and Realty indices were the biggest laggards, slipping 5 per cent each.

In the broader markets, FirstCry was biggest laggard, falling nearly 12 per cent, followed by Raymond Lifestyle and Jai Balaji Industries which tanked 11 per cent each. Jaiprakash Power, Inox Green, Premier Explosives and SpiceJet were down 10 per cent each.