Stock Market Crash: Sensex Plunges 957 Points, Nifty Slips Below 22,900 As HDFC Bank, Global Cues Drag Markets Lower

On Monday, October 19, Indian stock markets experienced a significant downturn as the Sensex and Nifty both fell to their daily lows. By 1:30 PM, the BSE Sensex was down 957.48 points or 1.28 percent, trading at 73,771.80. Similarly, the NSE Nifty 50 declined by 271.70 points or 1.17 percent, closing at 22,874.45. The Sensex hit an intraday low of 73,771.06, while the Nifty dropped to 22,861.05.

Banking stocks were key drivers of the downward trend, with HDFC Bank shares losing nearly 2 percent following its Q2 FY27 financial results. This contributed to the Bank Nifty falling around 0.5 percent. Exacerbating the situation, negative global market cues further fueled selling pressure. Asian markets, including the MSCI Asia-Pacific index, also traded lower due to concerns over excessive investments in artificial intelligence and their associated financing.

Even Wall Street, which had seen a decline on Friday, continued to influence the markets, with the Nasdaq falling 2.19 percent, the S&P 500 dropping 1.22 percent, and the Dow Jones losing 0.55 percent. Despite these global sell-offs, investors remained cautious due to elevated crude oil prices and geopolitical tensions, which added to the overall uncertainty.

India VIX, a measure of anticipated market volatility, surged nearly 4 percent to 14.52, reflecting investors' growing unease about potential further market fluctuations.