New Delhi, 04 March (H.S.): Indian equities plunged for the third consecutive trading session on Wednesday, hammered by the West Asia crisis, as the Sensex shed over 1,700 points in early trade and the Nifty dove more than 530 points—wiping out over ₹10 lakh crore in investor wealth on Holi.
By 1:30 PM, the BSE Sensex stood at 78,930.87, down 1,307.98 points, while the NSE Nifty hovered at 24,437.55, off 428.15 points, despite some late buying attempts. BSE-listed firms' market cap shrank from ₹456.90 lakh crore on Monday to ₹446.45 lakh crore.
Key Triggers Identified by Experts
Market analyst Prashant Dhami of Dhami Securities outlined five major factors fueling the rout:
Escalating West Asia Tensions: Heightened military clashes, including US-Israel strikes on Iran and retaliatory missile/drone attacks, have disrupted global markets. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz—route for 40% of India's crude imports—has stalled, sparking oil crisis fears.
Weak Global Cues: Asian and European bourses tumbled, with South Korea's market down 11%, Tokyo and Hong Kong also sharply lower, as investors dread economic fallout from US-Israel-Iran strife.
Crude Oil Surge: Brent crude spiked amid supply fears, hitting $82 per barrel; potential global petroleum price hikes are rattling sentiment.
FII Sell-Off: Foreign investors, net buyers in February, dumped shares aggressively—₹3,295.64 crore on March 2 alone—exacerbating the downturn.
India VIX Spike: The fear gauge soared 14% to 19.51, signaling heightened uncertainty over geopolitics and oil, prompting capital flight.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
