The domestic stock market saw a significant drop on Friday, with the BSE Sensex plummeting nearly 900 points and the NSE Nifty50 dropping over 1%. At mid-morning, the Sensex was down 883.93 points, reaching 81,317.23, and the Nifty50 had fallen 255.95 points to 24,889.15. This sharp decline resulted in a loss of over ₹4 lakh crore in market value for BSE-listed companies.
The fall was broad-based, impacting key stocks like Reliance Industries, SBI, ICICI Bank, Infosys, L&T, HDFC Bank, and others. Market uncertainty was largely driven by investor concerns ahead of the US non-farm payrolls report, which could influence Federal Reserve rate decisions. There is speculation that disappointing job data could prompt a half-point rate cut by the Fed, further heightening market anxiety about potential growth issues and a hard landing for the US economy.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers on September 5, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers, helping to mitigate some of the downward pressure. Meanwhile, global markets showed mixed results, with MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index edging up and US futures indicating declines.
Oil prices remained stable, and the Indian rupee appreciated slightly against the US dollar.