Sensex tanks 1,248 points, Nifty settles below 23,100 on spike in crude oil

Benchmark indices fell sharply on Thursday (September 24, 2026), with the Sensex tumbling 1,247.71 points and the Nifty declining to 23,063, following a spike in crude oil prices and selling in blue-chip Reliance Industries and bank stocks.

Weak global trends also dampened investor sentiment.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 1,247.71 points, or 1.67%, to settle at 73,580.54. During the day, it plummeted 1,264.33 points, or 1.68%, to 73,563.92.

The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 383.70 points, or 1.64%, to end at 23,063.10.

Among the 30 Sensex firms, 29 ended lower. Bajaj Finance dropped 5.47%, Axis Bank declined 4.67%, Bajaj Finserv 4.06%, InterGlobe Aviation 2.78%, Trent 2.75%, and Mahindra & Mahindra 2.31%.

NTPC ended unchanged.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 2.36% to $105.4 per barrel.

“Indian equity benchmarks closed sharply lower on Thursday, with the Nifty-50 and Sensex both falling more than 1.5 per cent, extending losses through the session after opening with a steep gap-down. The selloff was driven by a combination of surging global bond yields and a sharp rebound in crude oil prices,” Ponmudi R., CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield climbed to around 5.11 per cent, while the 30-year yield touched its highest level since 2004, heightening concerns over tighter global financial conditions and the possibility of further Federal Reserve rate hikes, Mr. Ponmudi added.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended in the positive territory, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index settled lower.

Markets in Europe were trading in the negative territory. U.S. markets ended lower on Wednesday (September 23, 2026).

Shares of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd (NSE) ended nearly 2% higher at ₹1,818 in their debut trade on Thursday (September 24, 2026). NSE commanded a market valuation of ₹4.49 lakh crore.

The ₹22,569-crore initial public offering of NSE, the country’s second-largest IPO, received nearly six times subscription on the final day of bidding on Monday (September 21, 2026), led by strong demand from institutional buyers.

“Markets came under pressure amid rising bond yields and a rebound in crude oil prices, reflecting heightened global macroeconomic risks. Investor sentiment turned increasingly risk-averse as concerns over the interest rate trajectory intensified, driven by lingering uncertainties around inflation and economic growth,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.

On the domestic front, the insurance and banking sectors remained weak following concerns regarding regulatory reviews of commission structures and their implications for profitability, he added.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹1,617.45 crore on Wednesday (September 23, 2026), according to exchange data.

On Wednesday (September 23, 2026), the Sensex climbed 299.17 points, or 0.40%, to settle at 74,828.25. The Nifty was up 117.80 points, or 0.50%, to end at 23,446.80.

Published – September 24, 2026 04:59 pm IST