Stocks in India Hit 51-week Low

India’s BSE Sensex fell around 1.1% to 72,775 on Monday, extending the previous session’s sharp sell-off and marking its lowest level since March 23, as the Middle East conflict continued to drive sentiment. Oil prices surged above $115 per barrel, raising concerns over inflation, higher import costs, and a potential global recession, while foreign outflows from Indian equities persisted, reaching $12.3 billion in March. The index is down about 10.1% this month, on track for its worst monthly performance in six years. Investors also remained cautious ahead of February year-on-year industrial and manufacturing production data due later in the day, after both eased to 4.8% in January from 8% in December. Most sectors traded in the red, with financials, consumer, communication, and miscellaneous stocks posting the steepest decline. Top laggards included Tata Motors (-6%), Billionbrains Garage (-4.7%), Axis Bank (-3.6%), Bharti Airtel (-1.7%), ICICI Bank (-1.7%), and HDFC Bank (-1.4%).

SENSEX decreased to 72455.00 Index Points, the lowest since April 2025. Over the past 4 weeks, SENSEX lost 9.45%, and in the last 12 months, it decreased 4.43%.

India’s BSE Sensex lost further ground to close about 2.3% lower at 73,583 on Friday, reversing the gains of the past two sessions. Lingering uncertainty around the Iran conflict and elevated crude oil prices intensified foreign outflows despite US President Donald Trump halting strikes on Iran's energy sites until April 6. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs lowered India’s GDP growth estimate for 2026 by 1.1 percentage points to 5.9% and raised its CPI forecast by 70 basis points, while also downgrading Indian equities from “overweight” to “market weight.” Most sectors saw selling pressure, with energy, airlines and financials experiencing the heaviest losses. Reliance Industries dropped 4.6% and IndiGo slipped 4.5%, directly reflecting the fuel cost pressure from elevated crude. Bucking the trend, defensive names like TCS (0.5%), Bharti Airtel (0.4%) and Power Grid (0.1%) posted slight gains. For the week, the index declined about 1.3%.