Overview
- Stocks plunged in volatile trade on Wednesday with the Sensex hitting an intraday low near 73,190 before late buying trimmed losses.
- Brent and other oil benchmarks climbed into the high-$90s after renewed US–Iran strikes and missile activity in the Gulf, reintroducing a war-risk premium to energy markets.
- Foreign portfolio investors were heavy sellers, offloading roughly Rs 8,362.92 crore on Tuesday, and the India VIX jumped about 6–8 percent, signaling elevated investor nervousness.
- Information-technology names led the sell-off—TCS fell about 8% intraday—while banking and PSU stocks staged late recovery driven by short-covering and reports the government may consider measures to support flows.
- Markets are focusing on the Reserve Bank of India's upcoming policy deliberations and any government steps to attract foreign capital because sustained higher oil will push inflation and widen the current-account deficit.