Stocks Sink as West Asia War Deepens, End FY26 in the Red
Stocks Sink as West Asia War Deepens, End FY26 in the Red
Indian stocks slide over 2% as West Asia tensions and oil surge push markets into FY26 losses, with Sensex and Nifty finishing the year lower.
Indian equity benchmarks ended the 2025-26 fiscal year on a sour note, with the BSE Sensex slipping 1,635.67 points or 2.22% to close at 71,947.55. Intraday, the index had plunged as much as 1,809.09 points to 71,774.13, underscoring a broad-based sell-off.
Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty finished at 22,331.40, down 488.20 points or 2.14%. For the full financial year, the Sensex shed 5,467.37 points, about 7%, while the Nifty declined 1,187.95 points or 5%.
Oil continued to rise, with Brent crude at $115.1 a barrel, up 2.18%. Among individual stocks, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, InterGlobe Aviation, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the biggest laggards, while Tech Mahindra and Power Grid edged higher.
Foreign institutional investors pulled out ₹4,367.30 crore on Friday, whereas domestic institutional investors bought ₹3,566.15 crore. For March, foreign investors had withdrawn about ₹1.14 lakh crore from domestic equities, signaling sustained caution across markets.
Analysts attributed the continued weakness to persistent global uncertainties and rising crude prices, which kept sentiment fragile even as pockets of value lingered. Investors watched oil, currency moves, and the macro backdrop for cues on next moves as the new fiscal year begins.
