Black Monday massacre: Indian markets vaporise ₹18 lakh crore in minutes as global sell-off intensifies

The Indian share market wiped out nearly ₹18 lakh crore of investors' wealth within minutes in Monday's sell-off on Dalal Street, triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on all imports. The domestic equity benchmarks BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50 fell over 5% in early trade today, recording their biggest one-day loss in value since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, amid fears of a global trade war and rising recession concerns in the U.S. The meltdown dragged the overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies to ₹385 lakh crore from over ₹403 lakh crore in the previous session.

The domestic bourses extended the sell-off on Monday, with the Sensex falling over 5,000 points (6.7%) to breach the 71,500 level in three sessions, eroding investors' wealth by ₹28 lakh crore. During the same period, the broader Nifty50 plunged 1,744 points (8%) to hit the 21,743 mark.

There seems to be no respite for the market in the near term as India VIX, also known as fear index, spiked 68.5% to 23.19, indicating high volatility to persist in the market amid global trade war concerns. The VIX is a volatility index calculated by the exchange to measure the market's anticipation of volatility and fluctuations in the near term.

What fuelled the sell-off in equity markets?

The sharp correction in the domestic market was in sync with global peers, with Asian stocks falling as much as 10% today. The sell-off was triggered following a rout on Wall Street on Friday as Trump's reciprocal tariff announcements sent ripples through the global equities, including U.S. stocks. In the Asia-Pacific region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Taiwan's Weighted stock index nosedived up to 10%, while Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's KOSPI plummeted between 5-7%. Meanwhile, Australia's ASX 200 index closed 4% lower.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average crashed 5.5% after losing 4% in the previous session, while the S&P 500 plunged 5.97%, adding to its Thursday's fall of 4.84%. Similarly, the Nasdaq Composite closed 5.73% lower, extending its previous session drop of 5.97%.

The global stock market braces for sharp volatility this week amid renewed trade war concerns after U.S. President Trump's reciprocal tariff announcements sent ripples through the global equities last week. Investors are also expected to trade cautiously ahead of highly-anticipated RBI policy, followed by macroeconomic data and quarterly earnings, along with global retaliatory tariff announcements against Trump's tariffs.

The RBI monetary policy committee (MPC) will unveil policy outcome on April 9, where the market is expecting another 25 bps rate cut. This will be followed by key macroeconomic indicators—IIP and CPI data—on April 11. Adding to it, March quarter earnings season will kick off with IT bellwether TCS set to announce its results on April 10. The market will be closed on Thursday for Shri Mahavir Jayanti.

(DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed by investment experts on fortuneindia.com are either their own or of their organisations, but not necessarily that of fortuneindia.com and its editorial team. Readers are advised to consult certified experts before taking investment decisions.)