The Business Bytes
THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU
MUMBAI, APRIL 7, 2025
In a dramatic start to the trading week, Indian stock markets witnessed a bloodbath on Monday as escalating global trade tensions sparked widespread panic across financial markets. The benchmark BSE Sensex nosedived 2,226.79 points, or 2.95%, to close at 73,137.90—its sharpest single-day drop in 10 months—amid fears of a global economic slowdown stemming from renewed tariff wars between the US and China.
The carnage followed an intensified standoff between Washington and Beijing, after US President Donald Trump announced aggressive tariff hikes, prompting immediate retaliatory measures from China. The move has reignited fears of a full-blown trade war, spooking investors globally and wiping off billions in market capitalization.
The broader NSE Nifty mirrored the downturn, sinking 742.85 points or 3.24% to settle at 22,161.60. During the trading session, both benchmarks plunged over 5% intraday, with the Sensex hitting a low of 71,425.01 and Nifty touching 21,743.65.
Investor sentiment remained deeply bearish throughout the day, as sell-off pressure gripped all major sectors. Metal stocks led the decline, with the BSE Metal index plummeting 6.22%, followed by realty (-5.69%), commodities (-4.68%), industrials (-4.57%) and auto (-3.77%). Among the blue-chip counters, Tata Steel emerged as the worst performer, slumping 7.33%, followed by heavyweights like Larsen & Toubro (-5.78%), Tata Motors, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Infosys, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and HCL Technologies. Hindustan Unilever was the lone gainer, ending marginally in the green.
Market breadth was overwhelmingly negative with 3,515 stocks declining against just 570 advancing on the BSE, while 140 remained unchanged. Alarmingly, 775 stocks hit their 52-week lows, indicating the severity of the rout.
The meltdown echoes previous historic crashes, including the June 4, 2024 fall when the Sensex had plunged 4,389.73 points, and the COVID-induced crash on March 23, 2020. Monday’s slump stands among the most significant in recent years in terms of both point-wise and percentage declines.
Adding to investor woes, the BSE smallcap and midcap indices also tanked 4.13% and 3.46% respectively, highlighting the widespread nature of the sell-off. All 19 sectoral indices closed in the red, reinforcing the depth of the panic.
Meanwhile, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued to exit the Indian markets, offloading shares worth ₹3,483.98 crore on Friday, deepening the downward pressure.
