Sensex plunges 995 points as Brent crude climbs above $115
Indian equities slid on Wednesday as Brent crude climbed above $115 a barrel and the US 10-year Treasury yield crossed 5%, souring sentiment hours before the Federal Reserve's policy decision. The Sensex fell 995 points, or 1.35%, to an intraday low of 72,603.57, while the Nifty lost 252 points, or 1.1%, to 22,497.70.
The drop came despite a strong debut for Jio Platforms, which listed at a 21% premium to its IPO price and became India's second-most valuable listed company with a market capitalisation above ₹12.5 lakh crore. Information technology stocks led the decline, with Infosys, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra and TCS falling 2-4%, and the Nifty IT index down more than 3%. L&T bucked the trend, rising 4% after its second-quarter results.
V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said the market had turned decisively weak and flagged reports of possible fresh US strikes on Iran after the midterm elections. "Brent crude has again firmed up to above $115, which is bad news for the Indian economy and markets," he said. He said a sustained recovery would depend on crude prices easing and a reversal in foreign portfolio investor outflows, which he put at $19 billion in 2025 and $31 billion so far in 2026, and suggested changes to long-term capital gains taxation could be needed to draw foreign money back.
Energy concerns sharpened after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group claimed a missile attack on Saudi Arabia's largest oil refinery, a facility with capacity of 550,000 barrels per day; Saudi authorities had not immediately confirmed the strike. Brent rose 1.4% to $115.40, while US West Texas Intermediate crossed $101. The 30-year Treasury yield moved above 5.3%, and the two-year yield, which tracks Fed expectations, approached 4.75%.
Asian technology shares moved the other way. South Korea's Kospi rose more than 6% after chipmaker SK Hynix reported record operating profit of 83.3 trillion won ($62.8 billion), nearly seven times its year-earlier level, with SK Hynix and Samsung gaining up to 9%. On the Nifty, Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Investments, said the index's failure to hold gains after testing 22,800 left the 22,500-22,250 range vulnerable. "We will need to see consistent trades above 22,715 or bargain hunting from the 22,500 region to renew upside hopes," he said.
