India’s equity market extended losses for the third straight session on Tuesday amid persistent uncertainty over U.S.-Iran peace talks, a sharp spike in crude oil prices and continued selling by foreign institutional investors.

Sentiment was further weighed down after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to reduce consumption of petrol and diesel, gold, chemical fertilisers and edible oil, while also discouraging non-essential foreign travel to help ease pressure on the current account deficit caused by elevated crude prices.

Weighed down by this slew of developments, the benchmark indices - BSE Sensex and NIFTY 50 - have plunged more than 3% over the past three sessions, wiping out over ₹11 lakh crore in investor wealth. The total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies fell to around ₹463.37 lakh crore from ₹474.65 lakh crore at the close of trade on May 7.

The 30-share Sensex has fallen as much as 2,568, or 3.3% in three trading days, while the Nifty 50 lost 709 points, or 2.9%, during the same period.

The selloff intensified after Brent crude prices surged past $105 per barrel amid renewed uncertainty over the West Asia crisis, after reports suggested that U.S. President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest communication, dimming hopes of an early resolution.

India relies on imports for more than 85% of its crude oil needs, leaving the economy highly exposed to fluctuations in global oil prices. A prolonged increase in crude prices tends to push up fuel costs and inflation, while also straining government finances and the rupee.

Market extends fall on Tuesday

On Tuesday, the BSE benchmark Sensex dropped up to 738 points to hit a low of 75,276 in the first hour of trade so far, while the broader Nifty 50 tanked 198 points to 23,618 level.  The broader markets were worst hit, with the Nifty MidCap and the Nifty SmallCap trading lower by 1% and 1.3%, respectively. 

Sectorally, selling pressure remained broad-based, with most indices ending in the red. Nifty IT emerged as the worst-performing sector, plunging 3.16% as investors continued to pare exposure to technology stocks amid concerns over global growth and rising geopolitical uncertainty.

Rate-sensitive pockets also witnessed weakness, with Nifty Realty declining 1.40% and Nifty Private Bank falling 0.83%. Weak sentiment in consumption-linked segments dragged Nifty FMCG down 0.61%, while Nifty Auto slipped 0.56% and Nifty Consumer Durables lost 0.70%.

On the positive side, metal and energy-related counters bucked the trend. Nifty Metal rose 0.59%, supported by gains in commodity-linked stocks, while Nifty Oil & Gas advanced 0.34% amid elevated crude oil prices.

Among individual stocks, NTPC emerged as the top gainer on the Sensex pack, rising 1.06%, followed by State Bank of India, which advanced 0.77%, and Tata Steel, up 0.61%. Bharti Airtel gained 0.47%, while Eternal and IndiGo traded marginally higher.

On the losing side, IT heavyweights bore the brunt of the selloff, with Infosys tumbling 3.55%, Tata Consultancy Services declining 3.45%, Tech Mahindra falling 2.55% and HCLTech shedding 2.41%.

Financial stocks also remained under pressure as Bajaj Finance slipped 1.52%, ICICI Bank fell 1.47%, HDFC Bank declined 1.09% and Bajaj Finserv lost 1.06%.

Among other major laggards, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone dropped 1.62%, Asian Paints fell 1.43%, Maruti Suzuki India declined 1.23% and Trent slipped 1.22%.

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