Mumbai — Indian stock markets closed lower on Thursday as escalating tensions between India and Pakistan weighed heavily on investor sentiment.
Despite a steady start to the trading day, a sharp sell-off in the final hour dragged the benchmarks into the red. The Sensex fell by 411 points, or 0.51 percent, to end at 80,334, while the Nifty dropped 0.51 percent to close at 24,273, slipping below the key 24,300 level after briefly hitting an intraday high of 24,447.
The slide came after the Indian government confirmed precision strikes on multiple air defense targets in Pakistan, following Wednesday’s earlier offensive—Operation Sindoor—that targeted nine terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The military action heightened concerns of a broader conflict, triggering risk aversion across financial markets.
Investor caution was further reinforced by hawkish signals from the U.S. Federal Reserve, which warned of rising inflationary and unemployment risks, adding to global market jitters.
Kotak Mahindra Bank led gainers on the Sensex with a 0.81 percent rise, followed by Axis Bank and Titan, which gained 0.7 and 0.69 percent, respectively. However, mid- and small-cap stocks bore the brunt of the selloff. The Nifty Midcap 100 index dropped 2.16 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 fell by 1.6 percent, reflecting broader market weakness.
Across the border, Pakistan’s stock market fared significantly worse. The benchmark KSE-100 index plunged 6 percent, prompting an emergency trading halt as panic gripped investors.
With geopolitical tensions high and global uncertainty persisting, analysts expect continued volatility in the near term. (Source: IANS)
