Indian equity markets ended lower for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday, October 1, 2026, with the BSE Sensex settling 570.59 points, or 0.79%, lower at 71,909.70 after hitting an intraday low of 71,292.88. The NSE Nifty 50 tumbled 198.50 points, or 0.88%, to close at 22,421.95. According to reports from Zee News, the bearish sentiment persisted throughout the week, with the Sensex falling 1.52% on Monday and continuing losses over following sessions before dropping another 0.79% on Thursday. Over the week, the Sensex declined 1,670.84 points while the Nifty fell more than 3%, extending the corrective phase for the eighth consecutive week - the longest losing streak in 25 years. Markets will remain closed on Friday, October 2, on account of Gandhi Jayanti. Of the 3,707 stocks traded on the NSE, 1,023 advanced, 2,574 declined and 110 remained unchanged. As many as 78 stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 291 touched 52-week lows. A total of 95 stocks hit the upper circuit and 199 hit the lower circuit. In a highly volatile session, the Sensex tanked 1,187.41 points, or 1.63%, during the day before recovering to close near the previous session's levels. The market staged a sharp recovery from the day's low, led by buying in IT stocks, which helped limit the losses. However, investors suffered huge losses as ₹5 lakh crore was wiped off from the total market cap of all BSE-listed companies during the session.
The Nifty Auto index led the losers, falling more than 3% to close at 25,384, as reported by The Hindu BusinessLine. The FMCG index and Nifty Metal fell 2.35% each, while Nifty Media declined 2.33% and Nifty Consumer Durables dropped 1.91%. In contrast, the Nifty IT index was the lone gainer, rising 2.17% to close at 28,304. Among the Nifty constituents, Bajaj Auto, Maruti Suzuki India, and Shriram Finance emerged as the day's biggest losers. The Nifty MidCap 100 index was down by 1.01% and Nifty Smallcap 100 index ended 0.97% lower. On the sectoral front, automobile, media, metal, and FMCG stocks bore the absolute brunt of the aggressive sell-off, with the Nifty Auto, Nifty Media, Nifty Metal, and Nifty FMCG indices recording the steepest declines among all sectoral gauges. From the 30 Sensex firms, Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Adani Ports, ITC, Power Grid, Hindustan Unilever and Eternal were the major laggards. In contrast, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Tech and HDFC Bank were among the winners. The broad-based selling pressure across sectors, particularly in automotive and metal stocks, contributed significantly to the overall market decline.
Brent crude prices surged 2.59% to USD 100 per barrel at the time of reporting, keeping crude oil prices elevated and weighing heavily on investor sentiment. Gold prices also gained 0.57% to ₹1,46,950 per 10 grams for 24 karat, while silver prices rose 0.35% to ₹2,24,523 per kg at the time of reporting. As per The Hindu BusinessLine, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹10,148.41 crore on Wednesday, September 29, 2026. The Indian rupee ended 50 paise lower at 96.32 per dollar on Thursday compared with the previous close of 95.82, according to reports from The Hindu BusinessLine. The rupee depreciated to its weakest level in two months as global bond yields surged to decadal highs and oil prices jumped, after breaching the key psychological barrier of 96. The currency pressure was deepened by foreign portfolio outflows on Thursday. The rupee weakness reflects broader global market volatility, with FII outflows crossing ₹26,000 crore contributing to the overall market sentiment. A depreciating rupee, elevated US Treasury yields, higher crude prices and sustained FII selling weighed on sentiment, dragging the Nifty to an intraday low of 22,217.30.
Technical analysts warn of further downside potential as markets closed below key support levels. Pabitro Mukherjee from Bajaj Broking said the immediate bias in the index continues to remain down and a follow through weakness will signal extension of decline towards the 22,000 and CY2025 low of 21,743. Mukherjee added that a move above Thursday's high of 22,610 will signal a pullback towards the 22,800 and 23,000 levels, but for meaningful trend reversal the index would require forming a sustained Higher High–Higher Low structure and reclaim the 23,000-23,100 level. Rupak De from LKP Securities noted that sentiments continue to remain weak as the index closed below its 200-week moving average for the first time since the Covid crash. On the lower end, support is placed at 22,200, below which further correction towards 22,060 looks possible, while resistance is placed at 22,600. The index will remain in a sell-on-rise mode as long as it remains below 22,600. Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said the market sell-off has been driven largely by external factors, with bond yields reaching multi-year highs and crude oil prices remaining elevated, raising concerns about the economic outlook for 2026–27. Nair noted that Q2 earnings are expected to be softer than Q1, which benefited from the lagged impact of operating costs, which may not be as available this time. Investors were also cautious ahead of the second-quarter results and the upcoming RBI policy next week. Despite the prevailing weakness, market experts said technical indicators point to the possibility of a short-term recovery, with the Sensex remaining below its key moving averages, trading under the 50-day EMA of 75,544.56 and the 200-day EMA of 77,684.60. Analysts said that while the broader market structure remains weak, oversold readings and the proximity of important support levels could help the indices stage a relief rally in the near term, with the immediate support zone placed between 71,000 and 71,200, while resistance is likely to emerge in the 72,300-72,500 range.
Several companies announced significant developments during the trading session. Sarva Foam Industries Limited filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus for its Initial Public Offering, while B.S. Sponge filed papers for a proposed IPO of up to ₹1,000 crore. Kotak Mahindra Bank announced the appointment of Anup Kumar Saha as the new Managing Director & CEO for a period of three years, effective January 1, 2027. Royal Enfield reported record monthly sales of 1,33,958 units in September, up 8% year-on-year, and TVS Motor registered quarterly sales of 1.9 million units with 27% growth in two-wheelers. For the week, BSE Sensex shed 2.7% and Nifty fell 3%, extended the losing streak for the 8 straight weeks for the first time in 25 years. With foreign investors having sold more than ₹10,000 crore in the previous session, elevated US Treasury yields could sustain foreign selling pressure and weigh further on Indian equities. Market watchers said traders may consider a hedged approach as market conditions remain volatile, with participants adopting a hedged approach, with 22,800 as the initial upside target, followed by 23,100-23,200. A decisive break below the April low could negate the rebound possibility and drag the index towards 21,700-22,000, while the market's near-term direction will largely depend on global cues, crude oil prices, bond yield movements and the trend in foreign institutional investor activity.
