As Middle East conflict deepens, Sensex, Nifty slump over 2%

Mumbai: Anxious over the deepening crisis in the Middle East and its ripple effect on the domestic economy, investors pressed the sell button for the fourth day in a row, sending BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty tumbling by over 2 per cent. Analysts said the selloff pushed the markets to their worst session in two months on Thursday.

The BSE Sensex tumbled 1,769.19 points or 2.10 per cent to settle at 82,497.10. During the day, it plummeted 1,832.27 points or 2.17 per cent to 82,434.02. The NSE Nifty slumped 546.80 points or 2.12 per cent to 25,250.10.

Analysts said that continuous foreign fund outflows and rising crude oil prices dented investors' sentiment.

From the 30 Sensex firms, Larsen&Toubro, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finance, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Titan, Adani Ports and HDFC Bank were the major laggards.  JSW Steel emerged as the only gainer.

"The domestic market took a sharp downturn following Iran's launch of ballistic missiles at Israel, sparking fears of retaliation and escalation in war," said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services. 

"New SEBI regulations for the F&O segment have raised concerns about reduced trading volumes in the broader market. Lastly, with attractive valuations in China, FIIs have redirected their funds, adding pressure on Indian stocks," Nair added.

In Asian markets, Hong Kong settled lower, while Tokyo ended in positive territory. Due to a holiday, markets in mainland China will be closed for the rest of the week. European markets were trading mostly lower. The US markets ended marginally higher on Wednesday.

According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 5,579.35 crore on Tuesday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 1.37 per cent to $74.91 a barrel. Equity markets were closed on Wednesday for Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti.