SENSEX below 79,700, NIFTY50 tanks 2% in noon deals; L&T, IndiGo, OMCs, defence among buzzing stocks

The Indian benchmark indices, SENSEX and NIFTY50, plunged to the deep red during the afternoon session on Monday, March 2, amid escalating tensions in the Middle East as the United States and Israel attacked Iran over the weekend, in the process killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Indian stock market, in a knee-jerk reaction, tanked on Monday, with the SENSEX crashing as much as 2,743.46 to an intraday low of 78,543.73. Meanwhile, the NIFTY50 reached the session’s low of 24,645.10.

At 12:45 PM, the S&P BSE SENSEX plunged by 1,603.41 points, or 1.99%, to 79,683.78, while NSE’s NIFTY50 was trading at 24,688.35, reflecting a 490.30 points, or 1.95% decline.

On Friday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹7,536.36 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth ₹12,292.81 crore on a net basis, according to exchange data.

Buzzing stocks on March 2: Check list

Shares of Larsen and Toubro (L&T) fell as much as 6.1% to an intraday low of ₹4,017 apiece on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Monday, March 2, amid escalating hostilities in the Middle East as the US and Israel attacked Iran over the weekend.

L&T remains one of the largest Indian players in the Middle East, with significant business exposure to the region.

According to JM Financial estimates, as reported by news channels, nearly 37% of the company’s order book is linked to Middle Eastern projects, while around 33% of its order inflows in 9MFY26 have come from the region. This substantial dependence makes L&T particularly sensitive to any escalation in geopolitical tensions across West Asia.

The stock of InterGlobe Aviation, the parent company of IndiGo, tanked as much as 6.78% to an intraday low of ₹4,500 per unit on the NSE.

IndiGo announced that it will not operate flights to and from the Middle East due to the situation in the region and the airport closures. It also cancelled flights to the Middle East, Europe, and the UK.

Furthermore, aviation stocks are largely sensitive to an increase in oil prices, as aircraft fuel and oil account for a substantial 28.7% of total airline costs, according to WATS.

ICE Brent Crude futures for May delivery rallied as much as 13.03% to a 52-week high of $82.37 per ounce, following the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

The NIFTY India Defence index advanced by over 1.5% during the session on Monday, as investor sentiment remained strong on defence stocks amid the Middle East conflict.

Out of 18 constituents in the index, eight traded in the green, and the remaining nine in the red.

Shares of Paras Defence rallied as much as 13.28% to an intraday high of ₹722.50 per unit on the NSE. Bharat Dynamics advanced as much as 4.09%, while Bharat Electronics rose 3%.

** Ixigo, Yatra, Indian Hotels**

Shares of companies linked to the tourism sector, such as hotels, travel proxies and booking companies, were trading in the red on the NSE.

The escalating hostilities in the region have led to flight cancellations and airspace closures. The Dubai International Airport, one of the busiest in the world and a major tourism hub, along with Kuwait's main airport and Abu Dhabi Airport, continue to remain closed, with over ten thousand passengers stranded.

Thus, shares of tourism-linked stocks have declined.

Shares of ONGC advanced on the NSE, while Oil India fell. However, Oil India stock was trading in the positive territory before falling into the red.

Shares of upstream oil companies rose following a sharp spike in oil prices. An upstream oil company explores for and produces crude oil.

When global oil prices increase, the oil they sell fetches a higher price, directly boosting their revenue and profit margins (assuming production costs remain largely unchanged).

The fall in OMCs shadows a broader fall in the NIFTY50 and SENSEX indices due to the tensions in the Middle East.

Shares of shipping companies slumped on March 2, amid the ongoing Middle East tensions. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East escalated sharply from Saturday following coordinated military strikes involving the United States and Israel against Iran, raising fears of a broader regional conflict.

Attention has now turned to the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial artery through which roughly one-fifth of global seaborne oil trade and about 20% of liquefied natural gas supplies pass. Although the waterway has not been formally closed, marine tracking data show tankers accumulating on both sides of the strait amid security concerns and potential insurance constraints.