Stock Market Records Worst Single-Day Crash Since March: Why Sensex Dropped 1,923 Pts & Nifty Plunged 594 Pts On 8-7-2026? Rs 9 Lakh Crore Wealth Wiped Out

The Indian stock market is bleeding deep red on July 8th and the reason is the US and Iran, who clashed with each other again, sending investors into panic mode. All indices crashed with heavyweights like HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries and TCS dragging the benchmarks. Notably, Wednesday marks as the worst single-day performance since March 2026 for Sensex and Nifty, with around Rs 9 lakh crore wealth erosion. US dollar rose above 101, the rupee weakened and crude oil prices skyrocketed by 6% each, playing a major role in bears’ cruelty.

Sensex, Nifty Worst Single-Day Performance Since March 2026

Ahead of the closing bell, Sensex crashed by 1,923 points to hit an intraday low of 76,259.03, while Nifty 50 plunged by 594 points to hit the day’s low of 23,805.20.

This is the worst single-day crash since mid-to-late March, when Sensex and Nifty around 3.3% decline on March 19, 2026. That time, Sensex had nosedived by 2,497 points. The reason was the same Middle East crisis, which impacted global oil and gas supply worldwide, threatening severe weakening to economies.

Rs 9 Lakh Crore Wealth Wiped Out

Due to the extreme bearish tone, at least Rs 9 lakh crore in wealth has been wiped out on BSE alone. When Sensex crashed around 1,923 points, at that time the BSE-listed companies’ market cap stood around Rs 471.64 lakh crore, which was a loss of Rs 8.56 lakh crore from the previous session’s market cap of Rs 480.20 lakh crore.

Currently, BSE-listed companies’ market cap stands around Rs 471.88 lakh crore. At the time of writing, the Sensex traded at 76,579.59, crashing by 1,601.13 points or 2.05%. Meanwhile, Nifty stood at 23,887, plummeting by 510.95 points or 2.09%.

1. US-Iran Ceasefire Agreement Over?

Sirens once again flared and sounds of kabooms echoed in the Middle East as the US and Iran went against each other, nullifying the ceasefire agreement. The US military launched a new series of airstrikes on over 80 targets in Iran, which included air defence systems, missile sites, radar installations and naval assets around Strait of Hormuz. The attack was in response to Iran’s assault on commercial vessels that transitioned from Hormuz.

Further retaliating, Iran launched attacks on US infrastructure in Bahrain and Kuwait. Trump told reporters the ceasefire agreement is ‘Over’. He called Iran ‘sick people’ and ‘scum’.

“To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore. They’re scum… They’re led by sick people… I’ll speak to our negotiators. They want to negotiate-they’re good people… but they have to come back to me. As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them,” Trump told reporters.

“With the renewed U.S.-Iran tensions and the consequent spike in Brent crude to $76, the market is again back to uncertain territory. How long this would last and what would be its consequences are now in the realm of uncertainty,” said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited.

2. All Heavyweights On Sensex In Red

Sensex crashed owing to deep selloffs in all 30 stocks. The worst to hit was Indigo, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Finance, Hindustan Unilever, M&M, Bharat Electronics, Asian Paints, ITC, Ultratech Cements and L&T which dropped by 3% to 5%. Largest stocks like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, TCS and SBI nosedived by 2-2.5%, dragging the benchmark.

On Nifty 50, 48 stocks out of 50 scrips were under pressure. Extreme selloffs were seen in Jio Financial Services, Shriram Finance, Indigo and Maruti with 4-5.5% decline.

3. Nifty & BSE Indices Crash Harder

Nifty Bank dropped by 2.7% to 56,651.80, while Nifty Financial Services plunged by 2.61% to 26,281.40. Among others, almost all sectoral indices declined by 2% with exception of Nifty Metal and Nifty Pharma which were down by over 1% each. Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Chemicals, Nifty Cement, Nifty Oil & Gas, Nifty Realty, Nifty Private Banks, Nifty Auto and Nifty FMCG nosedived by 2% to 3%.

Also, Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices crashed 2% and above.

On the contrary, India’s volatility index skyrocketed by 28%.

4. Crude Oil Prices Skyrocket

Following the new tensions, crude oil prices recorded one of their best single-day jump on July 8 over the past month. Brent Crude Oil zoomed 6% to trade near $79 per barrel and US WTI Crude Oil price jumped 6% to trade near $75 per barrel.

The renewed conflict raised the prospect of fresh disruptions to global energy supplies by deterring shipowners and regional producers from using the vital waterway. The escalation marks a sharp reversal from earlier expectations of a supply glut, after OPEC+ increased production quotas and Middle Eastern producers moved to ramp up output, as per Trading Economics.

5. Rupee Weakens Against Dollar

The Indian rupee weakened to trade around 95.68 per dollar due to US-Iran conflict concerns. On the other hand, the US dollar zoomed above 101.11 against a basket of currencies.

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