Stock market today experienced a weak opening on Wednesday, September 4, influenced by negative global cues. As of 09:20 AM, the S&P BSE SENSEX was down by 593 points, or 0.72%, at 81,962.85, while the NSE NIFTY declined by 192 points to 25,087.95. Investor sentiment was dampened due to weak U.S. economic data, which also triggered a sharp fall in Asia-Pacific markets, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 leading the decline.
In the U.S., tech stocks faced a significant selloff, particularly shares of Nvidia, which dropped by 9.5%, marking the largest single-day loss in market value for a U.S. company. Nvidia’s market capitalisation dropped by $279 billion, reflecting growing investor caution toward the AI sector, which has been a key driver of this year’s stock market gains. This decline followed the release of lackluster U.S. economic data, fueling recession concerns.
In the commodity market, oil prices continued to fall on Wednesday, extending the previous day’s 4% drop. Brent crude futures for November were down 0.5% to $73.38, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for October fell 0.6% to $69.93. This decline in oil prices benefited oil-linked stocks like paints and tyres, with companies such as JK Tyre, Apollo Tyres, and Asian Paints seeing gains.
Oil marketing companies (OMCs) also traded positively, with IOC and BPCL showing modest increases. Sector-wise, IT stocks were the worst hit, with the BSE Information Technology index dropping 1.34%, led by losses in major players like Infosys, TCS, and Wipro.
Despite the broader market weakness, small-cap stocks managed to outperform, with the BSE SmallCap index rising by 0.43%. However, the BSE MidCap index slipped by 0.25%, reflecting a mixed performance in the broader market today.
