The key domestic equity benchmarks traded with significant losses in early trade, mirroring sharp declines in global markets following the US Federal Reserve’s policy outcome. Investor sentiment remained subdued amid concerns over elevated crude oil prices, which continued to weigh on risk appetite. Nifty traded tad below the 23,350 mark. All sectoral indices on the NSE were traded in the red, with private bank, realty, and auto shares declining the most.
At 09:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 1,460.63 points or 1.90% to 75,243.50. The Nifty 50 index fell 452.90 points, or 1.92%, to 23,349.50.
In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index slipped 1.68% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index fell 1.33%.
Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 799 shares rose and 2,238 shares fell. A total of 141 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 13.49% to 21.25.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 2,714.35 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 3,253.03 crore in the Indian equity market on 18 March 2026, provisional data showed.
Stocks in Spotlight:
G R Infraprojects rose 2.12% after the company announced that it has emerged as the L1 bidder for an NHAI construction project worth Rs 2,441 crore.
HDFC Bank declined 3.43%. The bank informed that its part-time chairman and independent director, Atanu Chakraborty, has resigned with immediate effect from 18 March 2026. In his resignation letter, he stated that certain happenings and practices within the bank over the last two years were not in congruence with his personal values and ethics. Reserve Bank of India has approved the appointment of Keki Mistry as interim part-time chairman for a period of three months, effective 19 March 2026. Chakraborty joined the board in May 2021, and his tenure oversaw the merger with HDFC.
DCX Systems fell 1.36%. The company announced that it has secured an order worth Rs 12.8 crore for the supply of cable and wire harness assemblies.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.39% to 6.729 compared with previous session close of 6.717.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 92.8900 compared with its close of 92.4000 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement shed 0.57% to Rs 152,155.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.18% to 100.12.
The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.33% to 4.272.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2026 settlement rose $4.02 or 3.74% to $111.40 a barrel.
Global Markets:
Asia-Pacific markets declined on Thursday, tracking losses on Wall Street that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average touch a new closing low for the year.
The Bank of Japan kept the interest rates steady at 0.75% but noted that inflation risks now are tilted to the upside due to the Iran war.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2026 settlement rallied $3.85, or 3.59% to $111.23 a barrel.
Overnight in the U.S., the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial lost 1.63%, ending at 46,225.15, reaching a new low this year. The index also closed below its 200-day moving average. The S&P 500 fell 1.36%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.46%.
The Federal Reserve held its key policy rate steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, with Chair Jerome Powell watering down rate-cut expectations, saying that inflation was not coming down as much as ‘hoped.’
The U.S. central bank’s “dot plot” projects a cut in 2026 and another in 2027, even though the timing is unclear.
The producer price index—which tracks the change in wholesale prices—rose 0.7% in February, well above the 0.3% that economists polled by Dow Jones had estimated.