Sensex tanks 800-plus points over impending Trump trade tariffs

Indian stock markets saw a sharp decline on 21 January, Tuesday, giving up their morning gains and trading significantly lower by midday as investors remain cautious about impending trade tariffs from the new Donald Trump administration in the US.

The BSE Sensex plunged 849 points to hit an intraday low of 76,225, while the NSE Nifty dropped 217 points, touching 23,128.

According to a market expert, "Trump 2.0 has kicked off without much clarity on Trump’s likely economic decisions. In his inaugural address, he was clear on immigration but sounded vague on tariffs. The indication of a likely 25 per cent tariffs on Canada and Mexico suggests that the tariff hike policy will be implemented gradually."

Several large-cap stocks dragged the benchmark indices down, including Zomato, Reliance Industries (RIL), State Bank of India (SBI), Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel and Bharti Airtel. These stocks were among the top losers on the Sensex.

In the broader markets, the Nifty mid-cap and small-cap indices also faced significant losses, declining around 1.6 per cent each.

The market sentiment was overwhelmingly negative, with two stocks falling for every stock that gained.

Reliance Industries, which carries the highest weight of 11.5 per cent in the Sensex, saw its stocks fall over 1.5 per cent, contributing to 19 per cent of the index’s decline.

HDFC Bank, the second-largest contributor to the index, dropped 0.8 per cent, accounting for 10 per cent of the fall. Stocks of ICICI Bank and SBI also fell over 1 per cent each, adding to the market weakness.

Investor sentiment took a hit also due to disappointing corporate earnings for the third quarter. Most companies have reported weaker-than-expected results, causing a sell-off in the markets.

According to market watchers, Trump 2.0 has kicked off without much clarity on his likely economic decisions. At the opening bell, the Nifty 50 was up 0.25 per cent while the 30-stock BSE Sensex was higher by 0.09 per cent, as of 9:18 a.m.