Markets turn topsy-turvy; Sensex, Nifty slump nearly 1% on FII outflows, West Asia tensions

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty slumped nearly 1% in a topsy-turvy trading session on Friday, dragged by intense selling in FMCG, auto and energy stocks amid escalating tensions in West Asia and persistent foreign capital outflows.

Besides, a spike in global crude prices on supply uncertainty due to geopolitical tensions dented market sentiments, traders said.

Falling for the fifth day running, the BSE Sensex tumbled 808.65 points or 0.98% to settle at 81,688.45. The benchmark hit a low of 81,532.68 and a high of 83,368.32 during the day, reflecting a wild swing of 1,835.64 points.

From the 30 Sensex firms, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, Nestle, Bharti Airtel, UltraTech Cement, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, and HDFC Bank were the major laggards.

In contrast, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and State Bank of India were among the gainers.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹15,243.27 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong settled in the positive territory. Markets in mainland China are closed due to a holiday.

European markets were trading higher in mid-session deals. The US markets ended lower on Thursday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.99% to $78.39 a barrel.

Falling for the fourth straight session on Thursday, the BSE benchmark Sensex tumbled 1,769.19 points or 2.10% to settle at 82,497.10. During the day, it plummeted 1,832.27 points or 2.17% to 82,434.02.

The Nifty slumped 546.80 points or 2.12% to 25,250.10.