SENSEX, NIFTY50 post worst day in three month as surging crude dents sentiment

The Indian equity benchmarks fell for a third straight session on Wednesday, July 22, and posted their worst single day performance since April 22 as surging crude oil prices in international markets dented investor sentiment.

The SENSEX fell as much as 823 points and NIFTY50 index dropped below its important psychological level of 24,000 and touched an intraday low of 23,961 dragged down by losses in index heavyweights like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, Infosys and InterGlobe Aviation.

The SENSEX ended 715 points or 0.92% lower at 76,755 and NIFTY50 index dropped 191 point or 0.8% to settle at 23,996.

In the last three trading sessions, the SENSEX has dropped 1.79% and NIFTY50 index has tumbled 1.4%, data from stock exchanges showed.

Brent crude futures surged nearly 5% in international markets to touch an intraday high of $95.47 per barrel after the US military said it completed the 11th night of strikes on Iran early Wednesday.

Surging crude prices stoked fears of inflation among investors leading to a selloff in equity markets, analysts noted.

Selling pressure was broad based as 13 of 15 major sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended lower led by the NIFTY Realty index's 2.6% fall. NIFTY Media, Bank, PSU Bank, Pharma, Healthcare, IT, and Financial Services indices also fell between 1.2% and 2.6%.

On the other hand, select auto and FMCG shares witnessed buying interest.

Broader markets also came under selling pressure as NIFTY Midcap 100 index fell 1.1% and NIFTY Smallcap 100 index dropped 1.5%.

Among the individual shares, Bandhan Bank dropped 17% to close at ₹173.50 after its management decided to cut its exit return on assets (RoA) guidance down by 20 basis points to a range of 1.2% to 1.4%, from its earlier 1.6% to 1.8% levels.

RoA for a bank is a metric that measures profitability based on how much the lender is able to convert its assets into net profits for a particular period. A reduction in RoA guidance also signals margin pressure ahead.

On the margin front, Bandhan Bank’s management also highlighted that the lender’s margins are expected to remain under pressure from the higher cost of deposits.

InterGlobe Aviation was top loser in the NIFTY50 index, the stock declined 3.6% to close at ₹5,115 tracking a surge in crude prices.

Pharma shares like Dr Reddy's Labs, Cipla and Sun Pharma also ended lower after United States President Donald Trump proposed up to 200% tariffs on all generic drug imports into the United States following a two-year tariff-free period.

“Effective August 1, 2026, all Generic Drugs being brought into the United States will continue to have a tariff of zero per cent for a two-year period of time, after which the tariff will be raised to 100% for a one-year period of time, and 200% thereafter,” said Donald Trump in his post on Truth Social.

Infosys, Axis Bank, Jio Financial Services, State Bank of India, Ultratech Cement, Max Healthcare and Tata Motors PV were also among top losers in the NIFTY50 index.

On the flip side, Bajaj Auto was top gainer in the NIFTY50 index, the stock advanced 5.92% to close at ₹11,019 after the company said that it expects good, solid double-digit growth in both two- and three-wheeler demand, and it is aiming for the top position in the EV segment in the country.

In a post-earnings media interaction, Bajaj Auto Ltd Executive Director Rakesh Sharma said that the company would have posted better performance in the previous quarter but for factors such as inflation, supply chain issues, and serious logistics issues, which “impaired” availability by 10-15%.

Nestle India advanced 3.3% to settle at ₹1,500 after the food and beverage company reported a standalone net profit of ₹975.12 crore during the quarter under review, marking a 47.92% year-on-year (YoY) surge from ₹659.23 crore in the first quarter of the 2025-26 fiscal year (Q1 FY26).

At an operational level, its EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), also known as operating profit, stood at ₹1,538 crore for the reporting period, reflecting a 39.82% YoY growth from ₹1,100 crore in the year-ago period.

Tata Consumer Products, Eternal, Power Grid, ONGC and Hindustan Unilever were also among notable gainers in the NIFTY50 index.