It was a classic gap-down and failed recovery on Dalal Street today. Indian equities opened in deep red and despite a mid-session attempt to claw back, closed with cuts, extending the losing streak to the fifth straight week.
The BSE Sensex settled at 74,781.76, down 120.84 points or 0.16% at 3:33 PM IST. The index had a wild ride – opening at 74,309.16, plunging to an intra-day low of 74,160.16, then rallying to a high of 74,917.15 before profit booking in late trade erased gains. Previous close was 74,902.59.
The NSE Nifty 50 fared worse. It closed at 23,398.10, down 79.70 points or 0.34% at 3:31 PM IST, after opening at 23,270.30. The intra-day range was 23,231.40 – 23,448.10 against a previous close of 23,477.80. The index is now trading over 11% below its 52-week high of 26,373.20.
At 9:14 AM, the damage looked far worse. Nifty was down 234 points at 23,243.70 and Sensex tanked 708 points to 74,194.03, as GIFT Nifty at 23,346 signalled a rout.
The Oil & Yield Double Whammy
Why Traders Hit The Panic Button
Two global villains spoiled the party:
- Brent At $110: Brent crude surged above $108 and touched near $110 in Asia, up 12% this week alone. The trigger: Widening Middle East war. Iran-backed Houthis seized Yemen’s Mocha port and advanced along the Red Sea coast, threatening shipping, even as tanker attacks intensified in the Strait of Hormuz. For India, the world’s third-largest crude importer, this is a direct hit on fiscal math, inflation and corporate margins.
- US Yield At 5%: US 10-year Treasury yield jumped to the cusp of 5% after US PPI rose 0.4% in August, pushing Fed rate hike odds to 70% for next week. Asian equities tanked, MSCI Asia ex-Japan fell 1.8%, and risk-off swept emerging markets.
Result: FPIs net sold Rs 438 crore on Thursday. September FPI outflow has already crossed $1.36 billion.
Sectorally, it was carnage in cyclicals. Nifty Metal plunged 2.88% with Hindalco down 4.23%, Tata Steel down 2.29%. IndiGo fell 3% on fuel cost fears. IT was the only green shoot – HCLTech up 1.17%, Tech Mahindra up 1.03%, Infosys up 0.59% – as investors chased defensive dollar earners.
Business Buzz: What Caught India Inc’s Eye Today
- RIL Back With A Bang On Bond Street: Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries is set to raise Rs 10,000 crore plus Rs 2,500 crore greenshoe via 5-year rupee bonds at 7.47% coupon. Bidding is on September 15. This is RIL’s first rupee bond sale since November 2023.
- RBI Sends Strong Signal On Yields: The Reserve Bank partially cancelled a G-sec auction – first time in a year – accepting only Rs 45.06 billion of the Rs 110 billion on offer for the 6.20% 2029 bond. The move came as yields spiked 25 bps in four weeks to 6.45% on oil and US yield pressure. Traders read it as RBI’s line in the sand at 6.50%.
- Rupee Rollercoaster: The rupee slid to 95.7925 intraday, set for a 1% weekly loss, after hitting a two-month high of 94.30 last week on NRI deposit inflows. RBI sold dollars via state banks to stem the slide. Traders expect Friday open at 95.62-95.68.
- IPO Street On Fire: 2026 is set to be a Rs 1 lakh crore IPO year. Asset Reconstruction Company ARCIL’s Rs 733-crore IPO was the star today – oversubscribed 10.67 times, with QIB portion at 29.22 times. Dalal Street is also bracing for NSE and Jio Platforms mega IPOs.
- Corporate Action: Texmaco Rail bagged a Rs 27.82 crore order from Hindalco for BTAP wagons. Sterlite Technologies launched OFNP-certified fibre trunks for AI data centres. NPCI unveiled UPI Tap & Pay and conversational AI tool My UPI at Global Fintech Fest.
Geopolitical File: BRICS Shutdown & Trump Tariff Twist
- Delhi Locked Down For BRICS Summit: Lutyens’ Delhi wore a deserted look today as LG declared a holiday for all government offices for the BRICS Leaders’ Summit at Bharat Mandapam, Sept 11-13. Theme: ‘Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability’. Over 30 heads of state, international organisations and business delegates are in town. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal pushed for simpler BRICS trade rules.
- India-US Trade Deal Almost Done: Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement is “more or less finalised”. Framework for preferential market access is being thrashed out to give India an edge over Vietnam, Bangladesh and Malaysia. The deal will be signed at an “appropriate time”.
- US Supreme Court Voids Trump Tariffs: In a late twist, the US Supreme Court struck down key Trump-era tariffs imposed under IEEPA, calling them illegal. While the rupee cheered briefly, Washington and Brussels simultaneously slammed India at WTO’s 8th Trade Policy Review, citing high tariffs, Quality Control Orders, local-content norms and digital trade barriers.
Outlook: What Next?
Technical charts look fragile. Enrich Money’s Ponmudi R says 23,200 is key support for Nifty – a decisive break could drag it to 23,000. On upside, 23,550-23,600 is immediate resistance, followed by 23,800.
With crude at $110, US Fed meeting next week, and BRICS headlines, expect volatility to remain elevated. Keep stop losses tight and wait for oil to cool.
