Sensex tanks over 1,700 pts; Nifty cracks below 17,000

The BSE gauge Sensex crashed over 1,700 points while the NSE Nifty ended below the 17,000-level on Monday amid escalating Russia-Ukraine tensions. The 30-share Sensex nosedived 1,747.08 points or 3 percent to settle at 56,405.84 and the broader Nifty plummeted 531.95 points or 3.06 percent to 16,842.80. ]

On the Sensex chart, barring TCS, all shares closed with steep to moderate losses — with Tata Steel, HDFC, and SBI tumbling over 4 percent. Elsewhere in Asia also, bourses closed in deep red after concerns that Russia may soon invade Ukraine, which sent oil prices soaring.

Analysts said that domestic markets opened sharply lower in line with negative Asian bourses as also sharply lower US equities. Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities, said, "US stocks closed sharply lower on Friday as heightened concern that Russia may soon invade Ukraine sent oil prices spiking and investors to dump risky assets like equities".

Investors also weighed a sharp drop in consumer sentiment and a pickup in near-term inflation expectations, he added. The US administration has become increasingly outspoken about its concerns that Russia will stage an incident in the coming days that would create a false pretext for an invasion of Ukraine.

Global crude oil benchmark Brent futures spiked over 1 percent to $95.44 per barrel on Monday. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital market on Friday, as they bought shares worth Rs 108.53 crore, according to stock exchange data.