Indian markets decline sharply amidst global economic concerns

Sensex tanked 796 points, settling at 66,800.84; Nifty concluded below the 20,000 mark, closing at 19,901.40, down by 232 points

Indian market indices, the Sensex and the Nifty, experienced a day of substantial losses as most of their constituent stocks closed in the red. The Sensex witnessed a steep decline, plummeting 869 points to reach an intraday low of 66,728.14 during the trading session. Similarly, the Nifty recorded a drop of 254 points, touching its intraday low at 19,878.85.

At the close of the trading day, the Sensex reported a loss of 796 points, equivalent to a decline of 1.18 per cent, settling at 66,800.84. Meanwhile, the Nifty concluded below the 20,000 mark, closing at 19,901.40, down by 232 points or 1.15 per cent.

Among the key components of the Sensex, HDFC Bank emerged as the leading contributor to the decline, followed closely by Reliance Industries.

HDFC Bank tanked 3 per cent lower after the bank on Monday said its gross non-performing assets will likely increase as of 1 July, after its merger with HDFC.

From the Sensex pack, JSW Steel, Maruti and UltraTech Cement were among the top losers.

While mid and small-cap stocks also experienced losses, they outperformed the benchmark Sensex. The BSE Midcap index declined by 0.33 per cent, while the Smallcap index concluded 0.51 percent lower.

The overall market capitalisation of companies listed on the BSE decreased to approximately Rs. 320.7 lakh crore from Rs. 323 lakh crore in the previous session. This decline resulted in a collective loss of nearly Rs. 2.3 lakh crore for investors in a single trading session.