Samvat year in review: SENSEX, NIFTY50 end in red; key factors that shaped Dalal Street in 2082

The Indian stock market ended Samvat 2082 with losses, as sustained selling by foreign investors, escalating geopolitical tensions and rising crude oil prices weighed on market investor sentiment.

The new year will begin on November 8, 2026, as the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) will conduct a special Muhurat Trading session on account of the auspicious occasion of Diwali Laxmi Pujan.

As per the official circular, the stock exchanges will start the pre-open session at 2:05 pm (IST) and, after a period of 15 mins, the market will be open for a regular trading session from 2:20 pm on Sunday.

In India, every year, the stock market opens for a special one-hour trading session known as Muhurat trading, marking the beginning of the new “samvat” or year.

Vikram Samvat is a Hindu lunisolar calendar that follows the moon’s phases for its months and the sun’s cycle for its years.

Market experts believe Samvat 2083 could be a cautiously optimistic year for Indian equities, offering investors opportunities to build long-term positions amid evolving market conditions. They expect investors to remain selective, focus on fundamentally strong companies, and use market corrections to identify attractive investment opportunities.

Experts unanimously predict that domestic earnings growth, geopolitical tensions, crude oil prices, infrastructure spending, along with interest rate movements and currency fluctuations, among other factors, will remain key focus areas for investors in Samvat 2083.

Key factors that impacted indices in Samvat 2083

The market investors throughout the year remained jittery following the West Asia conflict.  The West Asia conflict escalated on February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched military strikes on Iran, targeting its military and nuclear infrastructure, prompting Tehran to retaliate on Israel and US military bases across the Gulf region.

This kept energy prices elevated and supply chains constrained, putting pressure on trade policies and volatility in financial markets.

The foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) shied away from the Indian market following the geopolitical concerns amid fears of higher inflation and economic pressure.

During Samvat 2082, the foreign investors recorded their highest-ever net selling, withdrawing ₹4.55 lakh crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) record net purchases of ₹8.55 lakh crore. 

The crude oil prices remained an important factor for the Indian equities. The West Asia conflict led to a pressure on the crude oil prices basket, raising concerns over inflation, the current account deficit and corporate input costs.

The domestic currency remained subdued during Samvat 2082, depreciating over 6% against the US dollar as compared to a decline 4.4% against the dollar in the previous Samvat.

The domestic currency touched an all-time low of 96.96 per dollar in May 2026 following the geopolitical concerns, tariff fears and outflow by the foreign investors.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) revised its repo rate and stance, influencing borrowing costs, liquidity and interest-rate-sensitive sectors. The RBI’s policy decisions also shaped investor expectations around economic growth and inflation.

The six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), headed by Governor Sanjay Malhotra, unanimously decided to raise the repo rate and shift its policy stance to ‘calibrated tightening’ from ‘neutral’ at its October monetary policy meeting. The central bank increased the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5% to counter spiralling inflation, which has been trending above its upper band of tolerance level of 4% since June.

This was the first interest rate hike by the MPC since February 2023, and the Governor said that the policy action going ahead can only be a rate hike or a pause.

The Union Budget 2026-27 influenced market sentiment after the government announced an increase in securities transaction tax (STT) on equity derivatives. The move triggered a sharp sell-off in the stock market. Higher government borrowing requirements also weighed on sentiment.