Russia-Ukraine conflict: Sensex crashes over 2,700 pts at closing, Nifty ends below 16,300 

Mumbai, Feb 24 It was a bloodbath on the Indian bourses on Thursday amid a massive sell-off as Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in Ukraine. Logging a significant fall, the benchmark indices closed nearly 5 per cent lower. The indices closed lower for the seventh consecutive session.

Amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, the Russian President announced a military operation in Ukraine, stating in a televised address that the action comes in response to threats coming from Ukraine. The development sent shockwaves, triggering a sell-off across global markets amid rising crude oil prices. The Indian markets opened on a negative note and slumped further during the day. 

The BSE Sensex plunged 2702.15 points or 4.72 per cent to close at 54,529.91. It recorded an intraday high of 55,996.09 and a low of 54,383.20. The Nifty 50 closed at 16,247.95, down 815.30 points or 4.78 per cent, near the day’s low of 16,203.25. It recorded an intraday high of 16,705.25.

Sea of red 

All scrips on the Nifty 50 and the 30-share BSE Sensex closed in the red. 3,161 stocks declined on the BSE, as against 231 that advanced, while 86 remained unchanged. 279 stocks recorded their 52-week low, as against 72 that recorded their 52-week high. 10 stocks were locked in the upper circuit while six were locked in the lower circuit. 

The volatility index rose 30.31 per cent to 31.98. 

The market capitalisation of BSE listed companies stood at ₹2,42,28,137.96 crore.

Brent crude crossed the $100-a-barrel mark for the first time since September 2014- while the rupee rose above 75.

S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities said, “With Brent crude breaching the $100-mark for the first time in seven years post the Russian military operation in Ukraine, both the benchmark Indices wilted with a 5 per cent cut, as the volatility index rose 30 per cent today . A peep into the advances-declinea ratio said it all as the carnage, together with the volatility witnessed today, was painful for both investors and traders.”

Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services said, “It was a big surprise for the world market as it was not anticipating a war. It was expecting a diplomatic meet between Biden and Putin. Markets around the globe plunged deep in the red as the Ukraine crisis intensified with Russia’s invasion into Eastern Ukraine. Crude oil prices crossed $100 per barrel and elevated inflation risk.”

Tata Motors, the top loser on the Nifty 50, was down nearly 11 per cent on the NSE. It was followed by IndusInd Bank and UPL, each closing over 8 per cent lower. Grasim crashed nearly 8 per cent, while JSW Steel was down over 7 per cent. 

According to Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd, the market is in corrective mode.

Chouhan said, “Investors turned jittery and pressed the panic button after reports emerged that Russia has taken military action against Ukraine. As the mood was sombre across global equity markets, traders back home also followed suit and pressed the sell button, resulting in across-the-board selling. Also, F&O expiry pressure also gave investors the reason to cut their positions further due to escalating geo-politicial tensions.”’

Vijay Chandok - MD & CEO, ICICI Securities said, While the escalated war situation between Russia-Ukraine has led to sharp cut in key equities across the globe, we believe crude trajectory will be key to watch out for going ahead.”

“We don’t expect major sanctions, which may drive a big spike in crude, equally harming Europe and US, or even in terms of an aggressive rate hike leading to slower economic growth. We, thus, believe that market stabilisation is likely in the short term. Nonetheless, a medium to long-term thesis on Indian equities remains intact amid economic recovery as reflected by key macroeconomic indicators, strong capex spends and robust corporate earnings ,” said Chandok.

All sectoral indices in red

All sectoral indices closed in the red with PSU Bank, Realty and Auto recording the highest losses.

Nifty PSU Banks fell over 8 per cent at closing, while Nifty Realty was down over 7 per cent. Nifty Auto closed over 6 per cent lower. Nifty Bank and Nifty Private Bank were down nearly 6 per cent each. Nifty Financial Services, Nifty Metal and Nifty Oil & Gas each closed over 5 per cent lower. Nifty IT was down 4.6 per cent. 

Midcaps, smallcaps face increased pressure

The broader market witnessed increased pressure with the Nifty Midcap 50 down over 6 per cent at closing, while Nifty Smallcap 50 closed 6.55 per cent lower. The S&P BSE Midcap was down 5.53 per cent, while the S&P BSE Smallcap was down 5.77 per cent at closing.

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