Market Crash Today: The benchmark stock market indices saw a sharp decline on Monday, driven by investor anxiety over key US jobs data that could influence future rate cuts in the world’s largest economy.
By 2:31 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 1,070.69 points to 81,130.47, while the NSE Nifty50 lost 314.10 points, trading at 24,831. Volatility surged over 8%, dragging down small and midcap stocks along with broader market indices.
This market plunge wiped out nearly Rs 5 lakh crore from the market capitalisation of all listed companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Reliance Industries, SBI, ICICI Bank, L&T, Infosys, and HDFC Bank were among the top losers, leading to a sector-wide sell-off. Banking stocks took a hit, with SBI falling over 4% following a downgrade from Goldman Sachs.
The market’s downward trend was largely due to growing concerns ahead of a US jobs report, which is expected to provide key insights into the Federal Reserve’s rate cut decisions. Participants expect 165,000 new jobs and a reduction in unemployment to 4.2%.
Additionally, Indian equity markets were affected by declining bank stocks. The gap between deposit growth (11.7%) and bank credit (15%) raised concerns over liquidity issues.
Despite the overall downturn, a few stocks like Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance, and JSW Steel managed to register slight gains on the Nifty50 index.
