Mumbai, March 9: The Indian stock market witnessed a significant decline during Monday’s trading session. By the end of the day, the Sensex fell by 1,352.74 points, or 1.71 percent, closing at 77,566.16, while the Nifty dropped by 422.40 points, or 1.73 percent, to settle at 24,028.05.
The decline was primarily driven by losses in the auto and banking sectors. The Nifty Auto index fell by 4.10 percent, the Nifty PSU Bank by 3.97 percent, the Nifty Consumer Durable by 2.81 percent, the Nifty Private Bank by 2.78 percent, the Nifty Metal by 2.60 percent, the Nifty PSE by 2.39 percent, the Nifty Oil and Gas by 2.37 percent, and the Nifty India Manufacturing by 2.36 percent. The only exception was the Nifty IT index, which managed a slight gain of 0.08 percent.
Midcap and small-cap stocks also faced declines, with the Nifty Midcap 100 index dropping by 1,127.85 points, or 1.97 percent, to 56,265.50, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index falling by 366.70 points, or 2.22 percent, to 16,132.20.
The India VIX, which indicates market volatility, also surged during the session, closing up 17.50 percent at 23.36.
Among the major losers in the Sensex pack were UltraTech Cement, Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra, SBI, Indigo, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, L&T, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank, BEL, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Titan, Bajaj Finserv, HUL, Power Grid, and Bajaj Finance. Conversely, Sun Pharma, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, and HCL Tech were among the gainers.
The market capitalization of all companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange fell by ₹8 lakh crore, reducing the total to ₹441 lakh crore from ₹449 lakh crore.
The sharp decline in the market is attributed to the surge in crude oil prices. Tensions in the Middle East have led to a 26 percent increase in Brent crude prices on Monday, reaching $119 per barrel.
The rise in oil prices is linked to output cuts from countries like Iraq and Kuwait, with Qatar also announcing a reduction in LNG production.
Additionally, the strengthening of the dollar has contributed to the weakness in the Indian market. The dollar index, which measures the strength of the U.S. currency against six major currencies, has reached its highest level this year at 99.70. This strength has resulted in a depreciation of the Indian rupee.
Bhupendra Singh Chundawat is a seasoned technology journalist with over 22 years of experience in the media industry. He specializes in covering the global technology landscape, with a deep focus on manufacturing trends and the geopolitical impact on tech companies. Currently serving as the Editor at Udaipur Kiran, his insights are shaped by decades of hands-on reporting and editorial leadership in the fast-evolving world of technology.
