Sensex plunges over 6000 points, Nifty by 6.89% amid election vote counting

Indian stock markets crashed by over 6,000 points today, after a sharp rally in the previous session. The Sensex had opened at 76,285.78. Similarly, the broader Nifty declined by 874.05 points, or 3.75%, to 22,389.85 in early morning trades. The 50-share index opened at 23,179.5, down 0.36%, or 84 points.

The BSE Sensex was down 6.71 per cent or 5,602 points at 71,002, while the NSE Nifty 50 was down 6.89 per cent or 1,634 points at 12.15 am. This is the biggest single-day fall in Indian markets since the onset of the Covid pandemic.

All sectors were in the red. Bank stocks fell 7.8%, realty dropped 9.1%, infrastructure declined 10.5%, while oil and gas stocks lost 11.7% and state-run companies and banks retreated 17% and 16%, respectively.

The benchmarks jumped more than 3% on Monday, hitting record highs and logging their best session in nearly 40 months after exit polls projected that the BJP-led alliance will likely get a two-thirds majority in the lower house.

The counting of votes for the general elections began this morning. Early trends indicate significant gains for the Opposition's INDIA bloc, which has already surpassed the 200-seat mark, a substantial improvement from the 2019 results.