New Delhi, 30 April (H.S.): Uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz blockade in West Asia and consequent crude oil price surge badly battered domestic stock markets today. Both Sensex and Nifty indices suffered major declines. Buyers mounted recovery efforts in the afternoon session after sharp early falls, partially lifting both indices from lows. However, renewed selling pressure in the final hour derailed recovery attempts, with Sensex closing 0.75% lower and Nifty 0.74% down.
Heavy selling persisted across metal, FMCG, and consumer durables sectors throughout trading. Capital goods, automobile, banking, healthcare, oil & gas, and public sector enterprise indices also closed lower. Conversely, IT index gained 0.37%. Broader markets saw sustained selling, with Nifty Midcap index down 0.98% and Smallcap index 0.48%.
Market weakness erased over ₹4.75 lakh crore from investor wealth. BSE-listed companies' market capitalisation fell to ₹463.45 lakh crore (provisional) from ₹468.24 lakh crore Wednesday—a ₹4.79 lakh crore loss.
BSE saw active trading in 4,337 shares: 1,649 closed higher, 2,532 lower, 156 unchanged. NSE traded 2,944 shares: 1,072 gained, 1,872 declined. Of Sensex's 30 stocks, 9 rose, 21 fell; Nifty's 50 saw 10 gains, 40 losses.
BSE Sensex opened 482.15 points lower at 77,014.21. Initial half-hour saw mild fluctuations before selling intensified. By shortly after 11 AM, Sensex plunged 1,237.50 points to 76,258.86. Buyers then entered, sparking recovery.
Sustained buying lifted Sensex 995.47 points from lows to 77,254.33 an hour before close. Late selling erased gains, closing 582.86 points (340.83 below daytime high) lower at 76,913.50.
NSE Nifty opened 180.70 points down at 23,996.95. First half-hour tug-of-war yielded to selling; within two hours, it shed 380.80 points to 23,796.85. Buying revived it, gaining 290.60 from lows to 24,087.45 (90.20 down) shortly before 3 PM. Final-hour selling dropped it 89.90 from highs, closing 180.10 points lower at 23,997.55.
Top Gainers: Bajaj Auto (4.72%), Sun Pharma (1.66%), Infosys (1.22%), Tech Mahindra (0.94%), Bajaj Finance (0.75%).
Top Losers: TMPV (3.16%), Eternal (2.76%), HUL (2.74%), Hindalco (2.74%), Axis Bank (2.17%).
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
