The domestic benchmark equity indices, the BSE Sensex and the Nifty 50 opened in the red on February 17, 2025, extending their losses for the ninth consecutive session.
The BSE Sensex opened at 75,641.41, down 297.8 points, or 0.39 per cent, against its previous close. Likewise, the Nifty 50 opened at 22,809.90, down 119.35 points, or 0.52 per cent from the previous close. At of time of writing this article, around 12:15 PM, the Sensex had touched an intraday low of 75,294.76 and the Nifty 50 had hit an intraday low of 22,725.45.
From their all-time highs, the Sensex has corrected 12.42 per cent and the Nifty 50 has dropped 13.51 per cent.
Investors Lose Rs 29 Lakh Crore In 9 Days
The combined market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies has witnessed a sharp contraction of Rs 29.4 lakh crore over the past nine trading sessions.
As of February 4, 2025, the total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies stood at Rs 42,623,721.47 crore. However, by February 17, 2025, around 12:15 PM, this figure had fallen to Rs 39,683,626.45 crore.
Top Losers In Sensex & Nifty 50 Today
Among the Sensex stocks, the major drags in Monday’s session are Mahindra & Mahindra, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, Infosys and Larsen & Toubro, with each falling in the range 1-4.5 per cent.
The top losers in the Nifty 50 pack are Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharat Electronics, Axis Bank, Wipro and ICICI Bank, each falling in the range of 1.5-4.5 per cent.
Weak Q3, Depreciating Rupee Drag Sensex, Nifty
According to VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist, Geojit Financial Services, the basic reason for this underperformance is the sharp slowdown in corporate earnings this year.
“The Q3 results indicate only around 7 per cent earnings growth. The fact is that a modest single digit earnings growth doesn’t deserve high valuations. This is the basic reason behind the relentless foreign institutional investors (FIIs) selling which has impacted the market,” he says.
Till February 14, 2025, FIIs have sold shares worth Rs 1.16 lakh crore, according to data from Central Depository Services (CDSL). In calendar year 2024, FIIs had sold equities worth more than Rs 3 lakh crore.
“Appreciating dollars aggravated the problem,” adds Vijayakumar.
“Only indications of an earnings recovery and declining dollar can reverse the weakening market trend. This may happen soon. India’s macros are strong and a growth and earnings recovery are on the cards. Inflation in the US is likely to rise, thanks to the Trump tariffs, and the US Federal Reserve is likely to respond hawkishly to that, further pulling the US markets and dollar down. This will happen, but we don’t know when,” says Vijayakumar.
