Elevated volatility, geopolitical concerns, and cautious positioning ahead of key macroeconomic triggers kept investors defensive. The prevailing mood was clearly risk-off, with near-term direction likely to hinge on global developments, foreign fund flows, and upcoming economic data, said analysts.
New Delhi: Investors’ wealth was eroded by Rs 4.98 lakh crore on Friday as markets faced heavy drubbing, with the Sensex falling over 1 per cent, due to fresh foreign fund outflows and subdued global trends amid rising geopolitical risks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 961.42 points or 1.17 per cent to settle at 81,287.19. During the day, it dropped 1,089.46 points or 1.32 per cent to 81,159.15.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms eroded by Rs 4,98,603.42 crore to Rs 4,63,50,671.27 crore (USD 5.10 trillion) in a single day.
Elevated volatility, geopolitical concerns, and cautious positioning ahead of key macroeconomic triggers kept investors defensive. The prevailing mood was clearly risk-off, with near-term direction likely to hinge on global developments, foreign fund flows, and upcoming economic data, said analysts.
“Indian markets continued to consolidate amid weak global cues and rising geopolitical risks, with investor sentiment turning increasingly cautious. The lack of progress in USA-Iran nuclear talks has intensified concerns of further escalation of Middle East tensions, while persistent AI-related uncertainty is also supporting safe-haven flows.
Sectoral indices traded mostly in the red except IT, media, consumer durables. Nifty realty was the major loser down 2.26 per cent followed by auto down 1.86 per cent. Nifty Metal slipped 1.69 per cent and FMCG dropped 1.69 per cent.
The overall market breadth was in red with 1,515 stocks advancing against 2,300 stocks declining. Bank Nifty dropped 1.08 per cent.
Volatility ticked higher as the India VIX hovered around 2.6 percent, suggesting elevated caution among traders as benchmarks remained under pressure through the session.
Analysts said that a lack of progress in US-Iran nuclear talks has intensified concerns of further escalation of Middle East tensions. Further AI‑related uncertainty persists despite selective buying of domestic IT stocks after recent corrections, they added.
Rupee traded slightly weaker on Friday, losing 0.02 per cent to touch 90.98 against the dollar.
Nifty decisively breached the crucial 25,350 support level, sweeping through a key OI-rich zone and nearly filling the gap formed after the earlier US–India tariff-led rally, signalling a clear shift in near-term sentiment, an analyst noted.
Interestingly, IT stocks provided relative stability during the decline, posting modest gains despite the sector remaining under structural pressure after more than 20 per cent corrections seen in February, a market participant said.
“Domestically, a risk-off tone prevails as the earnings season winds down and global macro factors take precedence,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
From the Sensex pack, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, InterGlobe Aviation and Maruti were among the major laggards.