Dalal Street Bloodbath: Rs 6.7 Lakh Crore Wiped Out As Sensex Crashes 1200 Pts; Nifty Ends Below 25,500

Dalal Street Bloodbath: The Indian stock market witnessed a sharp sell-off on Thursday, reversing the strong gains recorded over the past three sessions. The Sensex plunged nearly 1,200 points, while the Nifty tumbled around 365 points to settle close to 25,450 mark on February 19.

Profit booking after the recent rally, rising geopolitical tensions, Sensex weekly expiry, etc, weighed heavily on investor sentiment, dragging benchmark indices deep into the red. The sharp sell-off in the Indian stock market eroded nearly Rs 6.68 lakh crore in investor wealth, pulling the total BSE market capitalisation down to around Rs 465 lakh crore.

Why Stock Market Is Falling Today?

The sharp sell-off in stock market during Thursday's trading session was driven by a host of reasons including profit booking, geopolitical pressure, and F&O expiry. The heavy selling put banking, metal, auto and FMCG stocks under pressure.

"A big drop, after three days of gains, can simply mean people are taking profits for now rather than a change of trend. It is well known that markets move in swings, and periodic corrections are simply the natural way of profit-taking. But, the size and widespread nature of today's market correction, especially if the big names are involved, suggest that traders are re, assessing valuations and risk profiles. We could see a volatile market within limits in the near future," explained Pranav Koomar is the Founder and CEO of PlusCash.

Profit Booking

The sharp decline in Sensex and Nifty on Thursday came after the benchmark indices gained in the last three trading sessions. Nifty and Sensex gained close to 1.5% in the last three trading sessions.

Rising Crude Oil Prices

The surge in crude oil prices also brought declined during the trading sessions. Oil prices surged continuing their upward trend in the last three trading sessions amid concerns of supply disruptions on concerns of a conflict between the US and Iran. Brent crude oil futures rose above $71 per barrel on Thursday, extending an over 4% gain from the previous session.

India Vix Surge

There was a sharp surge in volatility during Thursday's trading session. India Vix was up a whopping 11.74% during the stock market closing hours. The sharp surge in the volatilty index indicated a massive surge in volatility in the Indian stock market.

Stock Market Closing: Top Gainers, Losers

IndiGo, M&M, UltraTech Cement, etc were among the top Nifty losers. IndiGo ended the session 3.2% lower, UltraTech Cement Limited was down close to 2.97%, BEL was down 2.8%, and Trent was down 2.8%, Bajaj Auto was down 2.59%. Oil and Market Companies and certain IT stock were among the gainers during the session.

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