As of 9:15 am, the NSE Nifty 50 index dropped by 2.2% to 22,779, and the S&P BSE Sensex fell by 1.8% to 75,163.
Market Overview
The Indian stock markets saw a significant drop today. As votes were counted for the Lok Sabha polls, the NSE Nifty 50 index fell 3.03% to 22,557 by 9.30 am, and the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 3% to 74,107. This was a sharp decline following a strong rally in the previous session.
Previous Day’s Rally
On Monday, the benchmarks jumped over 3%, reaching record highs. This was the best session in nearly 40 months. The rise was driven by exit polls predicting a two-thirds majority for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance in the lower house.
Election Impact
Early vote-counting trends showed the BJP-led alliance leading in more than 272 seats however, the final extent of the victory still needed to be clarified. Currently, the NDA leads in 288 seats, while the INDIA bloc is ahead in 213 seats.
Market Movers
The biggest losers in the Sensex, which consists of 30 companies, were State Bank of India, Reliance, Larsen & Toubro, Power Grid, NTPC, and HDFC Bank. On the other hand, Sun Pharma and Nestle were the only gainers.
Foreign Investment
According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹6,850.76 crore on Monday.
Global Market Trends
In the Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, and Shanghai were trading lower, while Hong Kong saw gains. US markets ended Monday with mixed results. Additionally, the global oil benchmark, Brent crude, declined by 0.68% to $77.83 a barrel.
Today’s market drop comes after a period of optimism driven by election predictions. As vote counting continues, the markets are reacting to the uncertainty surrounding the final election results.
-Prisha Jaiswal