The key equity indices showed a slight recovery but continued to trade with significant losses in mid-morning trade, as the escalating conflict between Iran, Israel, and the US intensified over the weekend, pushing crude oil prices higher and raising concerns over India’s rupee and macroeconomic stability. The Indian rupee also hit a record low of 92.3475 against the US dollar today, reflecting heightened pressure on emerging market currencies amid rising geopolitical tensions and a surge in global oil prices.
The Nifty traded below the 23,900 level. Auto shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.
At 11:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 1870.49 points or 2.35% to 77,068.15. The Nifty 50 index fell 568.15 points or 2.32% to 23,881.10.
The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index dropped 2.74% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index slumped 3.98%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 698 shares rose and 3,375 shares fell. A total of 201 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 19.37% to 23.73.
IPO Update:
The initial public offer (IPO) of Rajputana Stainless received bids for 9,70,640 shares as against 2,09,00,000 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:15 IST on Monday (9 March 2026). The issue was subscribed 0.05 times.
The issue opened for bidding on 9 March 2026 and it will close on 11 March 2026. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 116 and 122 per share.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Auto index tanked 4.59% to 25,833.80. The index tumbled 5.60% in two consecutive trading sessions.
Uno Minda (down 6%), Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (down 5.16%), Bharat Forge (down 5.09%), Ashok Leyland (down 4.96%), Samvardhana Motherson International (down 4.94%), TVS Motor Company (down 4.82%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 4.65%), Eicher Motors (down 4.5%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 4.49%) and Bajaj Auto (down 4%) slumped.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Zaggle Prepaid Ocean Services rallied 4.22% after the company announced that it has entered into an agreement with Blue Star to provide its employee expense management and benefits platform, Zaggle Save.
ITCONS E-Solutions rose 1.08% after signing a pact with APEXGCC Consulting LLP to offer real estate leasing support, leadership hiring, staffing and recruitment services for global firms planning to set up GCC in India.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories fell 1.29%. The company announced that it has received the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) on 4 March 2026 from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its formulations manufacturing facility located at Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh.
Global Markets:
Markets in Asia tumbled across the board today as oil prices breached $111 per barrel for the first time since 2022.
In latest development on US-Iran war front, Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of Iran's late supreme leader, has been named his successor, Iranian state TV reportedly announced early on Monday, as the war that began a little over a week ago with his father's killing took a dramatic turn.
Monday saw South Korea’s Kospi trigger its second circuit breaker in four sessions. The index plunged over 8%, triggering a 20-minute suspension in trading from 10.31 a.m. local time. Heavyweight Samsung Electronics plunged more than 10%, while chip counterpart SK Hynix shed 11.6%.
A circuit breaker was activated last week when the benchmark tumbled more than 12% Wednesday to record its worst single-day decline.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 tumbled 6.48%, falling below the 53,000 mark for the first time since February 06, while the Topix was down 5.8%.
The surge in crude oil prices comes after major Middle Eastern producers, including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, cut oil production amid disruptions to shipping following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. President Donald Trump, however, posted on Truth Social that a gain in “short term oil prices” was a “very small price to pay” for destroying Iran’s nuclear threat. “Only fools would think differently!” Trump added.
On Wall Street, stocks fell on Friday, adding to their weekly declines, as oil prices spiked and traders reacted to an unexpected drop in new U.S. jobs data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 453.19 points, or 0.95%, to end at 47,501.55. The S&P 500 fell 1.33% and settled at 6,740.02. Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.59% and closed at 22,387.68.
Friday's surge in crude prices was triggered by Trump's comments. POTUS stated in a social media post that there won’t be a deal to end the U.S.-Iran war without an “unconditional surrender” from the Middle Eastern country.
Qatar’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, told the Financial Times that Gulf energy producers may need to call force majeure in the coming days, shutting down production in a move that could send oil to $150 a barrel. The conflict in the Middle East could “bring down the economies of the world,” he warned.
Equities were also bogged down by the latest jobs data. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that nonfarm payrolls fell by 92,000 in February, a sharp contrast from the downwardly revised January gain of 126,000 and far below the growth of 50,000 that was widely reported expected number for the month. The unemployment rate also rose to 4.4% from 4.3%.