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Informist, Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2026

 

By Arya S. Biju

 

MUMBAI – Benchmark equity indices declined further on Wednesday with the rupee hitting a fresh record low against the dollar, rising oil prices amid continuing hostilities in West Asia, and amid fears that the US-Israel conflict with Iran might last longer than previously expected after the latter intensified its attacks on US bases. Both the headline indices closed over 1% lower, reversing almost half of their early losses. 

Wednesday, the Nifty 50 index closed at 24480.50 points, down 385.20 points, or 1.6% and the BSE Sensex closed at 79116.19 points, down 1122.66 points, or 1.4%. During the day, the 50-stock index hit a near-10-month low of 24305.40 points and the BSE Sensex hit a near-11-month low of 78443.20 points. Both the indices have lost around 3% since the US-Iran military conflict began Saturday. Indian stock markets were closed Tuesday for Holi. 

 

The Indian rupee fell to a fresh record low of INR 92.3025 per dollar as importers and oil marketing companies bought the greenback after risk sentiment was hit due to the ongoing hostilities in West Asia, dealers at the foreign exchange market said. The rupee settled at 92.1500 a dollar on Wednesday, nearly 1% lower from its previous close of 91.4700. 

 

Crude oil prices continued to rise on fears of a prolonged disruption at the Strait of Hormuz, a critical transit route that accounts for nearly 20% of global crude oil and gas flows. At 1540 IST, the May futures contract of crude oil was at $83.92 per barrel, up over 3% from Tuesday's close and nearly 8% from Monday's close. The contract of crude oil has risen by more than a dollar since this morning. 

 

A sharp jump in crude oil prices since the US-Iran hostilities began last week has been the major reason behind the sell-off in equities across Asian markets, which import oil from West Asian countries. However, the fall in Indian benchmark equity indices was less steep compared to their Asian peers.  

 

Wednesday most equity indices in the Asia Pacific region ended sharply lower with South Korea's Kospi closing over 12% lower after pausing trading twice as it hit two lower circuits during the session. The index had fallen more than 18% in three sessions since the US-Iran hostilities broke out. Among other major indices in the region, Japan's Nikkei 225 and TOPIX shed nearly 8?ch in the last three sessions. This decline, however, follows a sharp surge in these regional indices, which had risen 7-21% so far in 2026 compared to the 6-7?ll in the Nifty 50 and the Sensex. 

 

Coming back to the Indian market, barring four--Coal India, Bharti Airtel, Tech Mahindra and Infosys --all other constituents of the Nifty 50 closed in the red. Nearly 93% of the stocks under the Nifty 200 index also closed in negative territory. In the broader market, all mid- and small-cap indices closed around 2% lower each. Over the past two sessions, all broader market indices shed nearly 4?ch compared to the 3?ch lost in both benchmark indices. The Nifty India volatility index jumped over 23% to settle at 21.14 points, indicating an increased nervousness in the market. This also marked the highest closing level of India VIX in nearly 10 months.  

 

All sectoral indices except Nifty IT ended lower Wednesday, with the Nifty Metal leading the losses, down nearly 4%. Most metal stocks came under sharp selling pressure Wednesday as escalating tensions in West Asia rattled the global commodity markets and risk sentiment. Nifty Media, Nifty Oil & Gas, Nifty Realty, and Nifty PSU Bank closed over 3% lower and were among the worst hit sectoral indices. Nifty IT, on the other hand, closed 0.1% higher at 30305.25 points supported a fall in the rupee against the dollar. The depreciation of the rupee against the dollar is fundamentally positive for Indian IT companies as most of their revenues come from US-based clients. 

 

Shares of sugar-making companies such as Balrampur Chini Mills, Shree Renuka Sugars, Dalmia Bharat Sugar and Industries, Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar and Dwarikesh Sugar Industries rose Wednesday amid market talk on the possibility of the government introducing higher levels of ethanol blending due to rising crude oil prices. India achieved the 10% target of ethanol blending in petrol in June 2022, much ahead of schedule, after which, the government brought forward the target for 20% blending to 2025 instead of 2030. Sugar-making companies will likely benefit if the government is compelled to raise the necessary ethanol blending levels further.

 

Shares of PNGS Reva Diamond Jewellery Ltd. closed nearly 7% higher at INR 411.70 after listing at a near 4% discount to the issue price of INR 386 per share on the National Stock Exchange. At the upper end, the stock rose as much as 15% to a high of INR 433 and almost 5 million shares of the company changed hands on the NSE during the session. End 

 

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 4 rose and 46 fell

* Of the Sensex stocks, 3 rose and 27 fell

* On the NSE, 675 stocks rose, 2,579 fell, and 87 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 1,053 stocks rose, 3,245 fell, and 135 were unchanged

* Nifty Metal: down 4.0%; Nifty PSU Bank: down 3.2%; Nifty IT: up 0.1%

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BSE                                                 NSE

Sensex: 79116.19, down 1122.66 points or 1.4%       Nifty 50: 24480.50, down 385.20 points or 1.6%

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S&P BSE Sensitive Index	Nifty 50
Lifetime High: 86159.02 (Dec. 1, 2025)	: Lifetime High: 26373.20 (Jan. 5, 2026)
Record Close High: 85836.12 (Sept. 26, 2024)	: Record Close High: 26328.55 (Jan. 2, 2026)
2026 1st day close: 85188.60 (Jan. 1)	: 2026 1st day close: 26146.55 (Jan. 1)
2026 Closing High: 85762.01 (Jan. 2)	: 2026 Closing High: 26328.55 (Jan. 2)
2026 Closing Low: 79116.19 (Mar. 4)	: 2026 Closing Low: 24480.5 (Mar. 4)
2026 High (intraday): 85883.50 (Jan. 5)	: 2026 High (intraday): 26373.20 (Jan. 5)
2026 Low (intraday): 78443.20 (Mar. 4)	: 2026 Low (intraday): 24305.40 (Mar.4)
2025 1st day close: 78507.41 (Jan. 1)	: 2025 1st day close: 23742.90 (Jan. 1)
2025 Closing High: 85720.38 (Nov. 27)	: 2025 Closing High: 26215.55 (Nov. 27)
2025 Closing Low: 72989.93 (Mar. 4)	: 2025 Closing Low: 22082.65 (Mar. 4)
2025 High (intraday): 86159.02 (Dec. 1)	: 2025 High (intraday): 26325.80 (Dec.1)
2025 Low (intraday): 71425.01 (Apr. 7)	: 2025 Low (intraday): 21743.65 (Apr. 7)
2024 1st day close: 72271.94 (Jan. 1)	: 2024 1st day close: 21741.90 (Jan. 1)
2024 Closing High: 85836.12 (Sept. 26)	: 2024 Closing High: 26216.05 (Sept. 26)
2024 Closing Low: 70370.55 (Jan. 23)	: 2024 Closing Low: 21238.80 (Jan. 23)
2024 High (intraday): 85978.25 (Sep. 27)	: 2024 High (intraday): 26277.35 (Sept. 27)
2024 Low (intraday): 70001.60 (Jan. 24)	: 2024 Low (intraday): 21137.20 (Jan. 24)
2023 1st day close: 61167.79 (Jan. 2)	: 2023 1st day close: 18197.45 (Jan. 2)
2023 Closing High: 72410.38 (Dec. 28)	: 2023 Closing High: 21778.70 (Dec. 28)
2023 Closing Low: 59288.35 (Feb. 27)	: 2023 Closing Low: 17311.80 (Oct. 17)
2023 High (intraday): 72484.34 (Dec. 28)	: 2023 High (intraday): 21801.45 (Dec. 28)
2023 Low (intraday): 58699.20 (Jan. 30)	: 2023 Low (intraday): 17098.55 (Jan. 17)
2022 1st day close: 59183.22 (Jan. 3)	: 2022 1st day close: 17625.70 (Jan. 3)
2022 Closing High: 63284.19 (Dec. 1)	: 2022 Closing High: 18812.50 (Dec. 1)
2022 Closing Low: 51360.42 (Jun. 17)	: 2022 Closing Low: 15293.50 (Jun. 17)
2022 High (intraday): 63583.07 (Dec. 1)	: 2022 High (intraday): 18887.60 (Dec. 1)
2022 Low (intraday): 50921.22 (Jun. 17)	: 2022 Low (intraday): 15183.40 (Jun. 17)
2021 Closing High: 61305.95 (Oct. 14)	: 2021 Closing High: 18338.55 (Oct. 14)
2021 Closing Low: 46285.77 (Jan. 29)	: 2021 Closing Low: 13634.60 (Jan. 29)
2021 High (intraday): 61353.25 (Oct. 14)	: 2021 High (intraday): 18350.75 (Oct. 14)
2021 Low (intraday): 46160.46 (Jan. 29)	: 2021 Low (intraday): 13596.75 (Jan. 29)
2020 Closing High: 47751.33 (Dec. 31)	: 2020 Closing High: 13981.95 (Dec. 30)
2020 Closing Low: 25981.24 (Mar. 23)	: 2020 Closing Low: 7610.25 (Mar. 23)
2020 High (intraday): 47896.97 (Dec. 31)	: 2020 High (intraday): 14024.85 (Dec. 31)
2020 Low (intraday): 25638.90 (Mar. 24)	: 2020 Low (intraday): 7511.10 (Mar. 24)
2019 High (intraday): 41809.96 (Dec. 20)	: 2019 High (intraday): 12293.90 (Dec. 20)
2019 Low (intraday): 35287.16 (Feb. 19)	: 2019 Low (intraday): 10583.65 (Jan. 29)
2018 High (intraday): 38938.91(Aug. 28))	: 2018 High(intraday): 11760.20 (Aug. 28)
2018 Low (intraday): 32483.8 (Mar. 23)	: 2018 Low (intraday): 9951.9 (Mar. 23)
2017 High (intraday): 34005.37 (Dec. 26)	: 2017 High(intraday): 10515.10 (Dec. 26)

 

End

 

US$1 = INR 92.1500

 

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

 

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