Indian frontline indices, Nifty and Sensex, fell sharply (down over 2%) on March 30, ending a two-session rally. The decline was driven by heightened geopolitical tensions following the collapse of Iran-US negotiations, which pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel and weakened the rupee. Financials, autos, and consumer stocks led the losses, while the India VIX volatility gauge surged 8.77%.
Analysts noted sustained bearish momentum, with Nifty trading below its 21-hour EMA and RSI showing negative signals. Key support is at 22,500, with a break potentially targeting 22,000; resistance lies near 23,000-23,500. They advised caution, recommending a “sell-on-rise” strategy and disciplined risk management due to fragile investor sentiment.
Globally, US and major European markets also closed significantly lower on similar concerns. Market breadth was heavily negative on the BSE, with nearly 3,615 decliners against 761 advancers. Heavyweights like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank dragged the most. Among active stocks, Bharti Airtel and Hindalco saw high turnover, while Vodafone Idea and SpiceJet led in volume. The day also saw 67 stocks hit 52-week highs but 906 hit 52-week lows, with notable selling pressure on stocks like Shriram Finance and Tata Motors.
(Disclaimer: Views expressed are those of the analysts and not of The Economic Times.)