The Indian stock market showcased a disappointing trade on Thursday, February 19, reflecting a huge selling spree by investors.
Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty crashed over 1 per cent, with the 30-share BSE Sensex plunging 1236.22 points or 1.48 per cent, to 82,498.14. NSE Nifty declined 365 points, or 1.41 per cent, to 25,452.35.
As per PTI, from the Sensex firms, Trent, Mahindra & Mahindra, IndiGo, UltraTech Cement, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reliance Industries, Bharat Electronics Ltd, PowerGrid, Adani Ports, ITC, Asian Paints, Axis Bank and Bharti Airtel were among the major laggards.
What caused the stock market crash?
As per stock market analysts, volatility in Brent Crude, the global oil benchmark, which comes in the backdrop of the delays in the US-Iran deal and rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, could be some of the reasons that are weighing heavily on the Indian equity market.
"It appears to be a near-term, broad-based sell-off as the market has performed well month-to-date, triggering profit booking. These are also affected by factors that FIIs participation may get muted due to the Lunar New Year holiday period across Asian markets," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd to PTI.
Additionally, Thursday is a non-settlement day because of a banking holiday. While these factors do not typically influence market direction, they can affect trading mechanics, liquidity, and volumes, he added.
Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 1,154.34 crore on Wednesday, while domestic institutional investors were also the net buyers of stocks worth Rs 440.34 crore, according to exchange data.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi settled 3 per cent higher, while Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark closed 1 per cent higher. Markets in Hong Kong and mainland China remained closed for the Lunar New Year holidays.