Mumbai: The Indian stock market on Thursday suffered its sharpest fall in nearly two years, with benchmark indices declining more than 3 per cent.
Following a three-day winning streak, the Sensex plunged 2,497 points to 74,207, while the Nifty shed 776 points to 23,002.
The fresh wave of selling on Dalal Street was triggered mainly by a global surge in oil prices as the war between US-Israel and Iran rages in West Asia.
The war, which started on February with joint US-Israeli strikes killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, has spiralled into a full-blown ‘oil war’.
After Israel struck the South Pars gasfield, which Iran shares with Qatar, on Wednesday, Tehran retaliated by targeting oil giant Aramco’s Samref refinery in Saudi Arabia, and also gas facilities in Qatar and the UAE.
Crude oil prices have surged past $115 per barrel due to escalating tensions in the Gulf region, leading to apprehension about a prolonged disruption.
Uncertainty and concerns around unsettled HDFC Bank investors also played a role in the massive crash. HDFC Bank shares fell more than 5 per cent after the resignation of its chairman Atanu Chakraborty, and financial stocks remained under pressure through the day, contributing significantly to the benchmark declines.
It was the worst market crash since the Iran-US war started, as investors lost Rs 14 lakh crore.
Auto stocks fell over 4 per cent, while banking, IT, metal and consumer durable indices declined around 3 to 4 per cent each, reflecting widespread risk aversion across sectors.
As many as 3,072 shares declined, as against 999 advances.
