The Indian stock market witnessed heavy selling pressure on Wednesday, erasing part of its recent gains as tensions in the Middle East resurfaced after the U.S. and Iran resumed attacks. Market sentiment was further dented after U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire agreement with Iran was “over,” triggering a sharp sell-off that dragged the benchmark indices down more than 2%.
The Nifty 50 plunged 2.12% to settle below the 24,000 mark at 23,882, while the Sensex tumbled 2.14% to close at 76,503. This marked the biggest single-day decline for both benchmark indices since late March. The broader market also ended lower, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 falling 1.55% and 2.24%, respectively.
All major sectoral indices ended in the red, with the Nifty PSU Bank index leading the losses after plunging 2.27%. It was followed by the Nifty Chemicals, Nifty Cement, Nifty Private Bank, Nifty FMCG, Nifty Media, Nifty Auto, and Nifty Oil & Gas indices, all of which ended the session with losses of more than 2%.
As per the media reports, the US launched strikes on Iran early Wednesday, hours after it revoked a license authorizing the sale of Iranian oil in retaliation for what it said were Tehran’s attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
In retaliation, Iran reportedly resumed attacks in the region, launching missiles at U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait. Both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreement.
U.S. President Donald Trump later said the interim agreement with Iran was “over” but added that he would allow diplomatic talks to continue. His remarks raised concerns that the broader conflict in the Middle East could intensify again.
Broad-based selling hits PSU banks, aviation, IT and capital market stocks
More than 100 constituents of the Nifty 500 ended the session with losses of over 3%, with state-owned banks (sector) emerging as the worst performers. All PSU bank stocks closed in the red, led by Bank of India, Union Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, Canara Bank and Bank of Baroda, which declined by as much as 5.1%.
Crude oil-sensitive stocks also witnessed sharp selling. InterGlobe Aviation fell 5% to ₹5,124, while tyre makers MRF, JK Tyre & Industries and Balkrishna Industries declined 4.1%, 4% and 3.9%, respectively.
Among IT stocks, Mphasis and Coforge dropped 5.6% and 4.6%, respectively. Capital market-related stocks, including 360 One Wam, HDFC Asset Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Nuvama Wealth Management, CDSL and CAMS, also witnessed another round of selling, falling between 3.5% and 5%.
Meanwhile, all three state-run oil marketing companies (OMCs)—Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC)—ended the session with losses of up to 5%.
Kalyan Jewellers, Ather Energy buck weak market trend
Despite the broad-based sell-off, a handful of stocks managed to buck the trend, led by Kalyan Jewellers India, which surged 5.5% to ₹374 apiece after analysts remained bullish on the stock following its June quarter business update.
Ather Energy was another top performer in the Nifty 500 pack, rising 5.2% to ₹1,200, while MCX also gained 4%.
Other notable gainers included Chennai Petroleum, NALCO, Premier Energies, Acutaas Chemicals, Oil India, Info Edge (India), Exide Industries, RHI Magnesita India, BSE and Indus Towers, all of which ended the session with gains of more than 1.5%.
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