West Asia worries send benchmark indices to six-month low; third 1% plunge in 10 sessions

Brokers track market trends as Sensex and Nifty go into tailspin | Photo Credit: ANI Indian equity markets came under renewed selling pressure on Monday as escalating uncertainty over the West Asia conflict weighed on investor sentiment after the U.S. rejected proposals for a ceasefire.The benchmark Sensex fell 1.52% to close at 72,771.72 points, while the Nifty50 declined 1.6% to settle at 22,780.25, extending losses from the previous session.The indices opened nearly 100 points below their previous closes and slipped further during morning trade, with the Sensex briefly nearing the 72,000 mark and the Nifty approaching 22,000 levels by around 10:30 am. The benchmarks remained largely range-bound near the day’s lows before closing lower.Monday’s decline marked the second instance in the past five trading sessions and the third in the last ten sessions when the benchmark indices fell more than 1%, highlighting renewed weakness after a prolonged phase of range-bound movement.Selling pressure was broad-based, with all 21 sectoral indices on the NSE ending in the red. The Nifty Bank index declined nearly 2%, reflecting pressure across financial stocks. Of the 3,676 stocks traded on the NSE, more than 2,700 ended lower, while only around 896 stocks advanced, signalling a broad negative sentiment.Market participants attributed the sharp decline to concerns that the rejection of a ceasefire proposal by the US could prolong tensions in West Asia, raising risks of supply disruptions and higher commodity prices, particularly crude oil.“The US rejection of the ceasefire proposal has heightened concerns that tensions in West Asia could persist for longer than anticipated, reducing the likelihood of a near-term diplomatic resolution and raising the risk of prolonged supply-side disruptions and higher commodity prices,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited.Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 3.81 per cent to USD 108.3 per barrel.“A decisive break below 22,700 could intensify selling pressure and drag the index towards 22,400, where the trendline joining the major lows of the past two years and the 200-week EMA provide important support,” said Pabitro Mukherjee, Deputy Vice President–Research, Bajaj Broking. Published - September 28, 2026 08:01 pm IST