New Delhi: Investors’ wealth was eroded by Rs 4.98 lakh crore on Friday, February 27, as markets faced heavy drubbing, with the Sensex falling over 1 per cent, due to fresh foreign fund outflows and subdued global trends amid rising geopolitical risks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 961.42 points or 1.17 per cent to settle at 81,287.19. During the day, it dropped 1,089.46 points or 1.32 per cent to 81,159.15.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms eroded by Rs 4,98,603.42 crore to Rs 4,63,50,671.27 crore (USD 5.10 trillion) in a single day.
“Indian markets continued to consolidate amid weak global cues and rising geopolitical risks, with investor sentiment turning increasingly cautious. The lack of progress in US–Iran nuclear talks has intensified concerns of further escalation of Middle East tensions, while persistent AI-related uncertainty is also supporting safe-haven flows.
“Domestically, a risk-off tone prevails as the earnings season winds down and global macro factors take precedence,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
From the Sensex pack, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv, InterGlobe Aviation and Maruti were among the major laggards.
HCL Tech, Trent, Infosys, Eternal and NTPC were the gainers.
Among sectoral indices, realty dropped 2.25 per cent, telecommunication (1.83 per cent), auto (1.81 per cent), metal (1.57 per cent), commodities (1.56 per cent), FMCG (1.52 per cent) and financial services (1.50 per cent).
IT and BSE Focused IT were the only gainers.
“Markets traded under pressure on Friday and ended sharply lower, extending the corrective tone amid weak cues. Investor sentiment weakened due to a combination of factors including inconsistent foreign flows, weak global cues and lingering geopolitical tensions,” Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said.
The BSE smallcap select index declined 0.84 per cent and midcap select index dipped 0.71 per cent.
A total of 2,528 stocks declined, while 1,660 advanced and 181 remained unchanged on the BSE.
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