Markets Crash, Sensex Down 4,000 Points As Votes Are Counted

Indian stock markets crashed by over 4,000 points today, after a sharp rally in the previous session, as early election results showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance leading in more than 272 seats, but the extent of the victory was not clear and its lead narrower than what exit polls had predicted.

The BSE Sensex closed 5.74 per cent or 4,389 points at 72,079, while the NSE Nifty 50 ended 5.93 per cent or 1,379 points lower. This is the biggest single-day fall in Indian markets since the onset of the Covid pandemic.

The sharp fall erased all of Monday’s gains after exit polls projected that the BJP-led alliance will likely get a two-thirds majority in the lower house.

All sectors were in the red. Bank stocks fell 7.8%, realty dropped 9.1%, infrastructure declined 10.5%, while oil and gas stocks lost 11.7% and state-run companies and banks retreated 17% and 16%, respectively.

The biggest laggards in the 30 company Sensex were State Bank of India, Reliance, Larsen & Toubro, Power Grid, NTPC, HDFC Bank.