Why is stock market down today? Nifty50 falls 317 points, BSE Sensex crashes 961 points to close at 81,287- top reasons

Stock market today: Benchmark equity indices, Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, crashed more than 1% as fresh foreign fund outflows and weak global cues weighed on investor sentiment amid rising geopolitical tensions. While Nifty50 317.90 points, or 1.25 per cent, to settle at 25,178.65. BSE Sensex plunged 961.42 points, or 1.17 per cent, to close at 81,287.19. During the session, the index dropped as much as 1,089.46 points, or 1.32 per cent, to an intraday low of 81,159.15.Markets marked a second consecutive day of declines, as strong selling pressure hit FMCG, automobile, real estate and pharmaceutical stocks. The crash rased more than Rs 5.5 lakh crore from investors’ wealth, reducing the combined market capitalisation of companies listed on the BSE to about Rs 463 lakh crore.1) FII selling The weakness in the market was partly attributed to sustained selling by foreign investors, which weighed on overall sentiment. According to NSE data, foreign institutional investors had net sold Indian equities worth nearly Rs 3,466 crore in the previous session.Domestic institutional investors continued to provide some support, remaining net buyers with purchases amounting to Rs 5,032 crore on Thursday.2) Weak global cues Global market weakness also weighed on domestic equities. On Thursday, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite on Wall Street ended in negative territory as the technology-led rally lost strength. Shares of Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, fell about 5 per cent after a sharp rise the previous day driven by better-than-expected January quarter earnings and a strong revenue outlook for the current quarter.Alphabet, the parent company of Google, declined nearly 2 per cent, while Amazon slipped more than 1 per cent. AMD dropped over 3 per cent, whereas Salesforce gained more than 4 per cent following strong earnings results. Overall, the Nasdaq Composite closed with a loss of over 1 per cent.In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 edged up 0.16 per cent, while South Korea’s Kospi fell by about 1 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite were trading higher.3) US-Iran tensions Geopolitical concerns also added to market nervousness as the United States and Iran held indirect talks on Thursday regarding Iran’s nuclear programme. However, no agreement was reached, keeping uncertainty elevated amid fears of escalating tensions and the possibility of military action, as the administration of US President Donald Trump has deployed significant air and naval forces in the region.Earlier, Trump had warned Iran that it must reach an agreement on its nuclear programme within 10–15 days or face “really bad things”.4) Rupee weakens The rupee slipped slightly against the US dollar amid continued demand for the American currency. The Indian currency opened at 90.9475 per dollar, weaker than the previous close of 90.9050, and was trading around 90.5 in the afternoon session.According to Bajaj Broking, the Nifty had an immediate resistance level at 25,650, which has already been breached. The brokerage noted that only a sustained move above this level would indicate a pause in the ongoing correction.“Index is seen consolidating in the range of 25,350-25,900 in the last 9 sessions. A breakout or a breakdown below this range will signal next direction trend. Volatility is likely to remain elevated amid uncertain global cues. A breach below Tuesday's low 25,327 will open further downside towards the 200-day EMA and the previous gap-up area placed around 25,100-25,200,” it added.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)