Mumbai’s stock market is reeling from escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, with the benchmark Sensex plunging over 1,400 points to trade below the crucial 80,000 mark. As of midday trading, the Sensex was down 1,486 points or 1.83% at 79,806, while the Nifty slipped 453 points or 1.80% to 24,725. The sharp sell-off has wiped out nearly 9 lakh crore rupees from the total market capitalization, bringing it down to 454 lakh crore from 463 lakh crore earlier in the session.
The auto and consumer durables sectors bore the brunt of the downturn, with Nifty Auto and Nifty Consumer Durables both shedding 3%. Infrastructure, realty, oil & gas, and energy indices also posted heavy losses of 2.22% to 2.77%. Broader market indices mirrored the weakness, as Nifty Midcap 100 fell 1,200 points or 2.03% to 57,914, and Nifty Smallcap 100 dropped 362 points or 2.14% to 16,566.
In the Sensex pack, gainers were few and far between, led by BEL, Sun Pharma, and Bharti Airtel. Heavyweights like L&T, IndiGo, Maruti Suzuki, M&M, Asian Paints, Trent, NTPC, Titan, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, SBI, Power Grid, HUL, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank all ended deep in the red.
Geopolitical risks are squarely blamed for the rout, as the Israel-Iran conflict draws in the US and several Gulf nations. Adding to the pressure, the Indian rupee weakened against the dollar, amplifying investor concerns. Safe-haven assets surged in response: gold jumped over 3% to $5,415 per ounce, silver rose 2.7% to $95 per ounce, Brent crude spiked 9% to $79 per barrel, and WTI crude climbed 8% to $72 per barrel.
Analysts warn that prolonged Middle East instability could keep markets volatile, urging investors to brace for more turbulence. With global energy prices soaring, sectors sensitive to input costs like autos and durables may face extended pain. As trading progresses, all eyes remain on diplomatic developments and crude oil trajectories to gauge the depth of this correction.