On January 8, 2026, the Indian stock market witnessed its worst session in a month as the BSE Sensex plummeted 780 points to close at 84,181, while the NSE Nifty fell 264 points to finish below the critical 25,900 mark. The sharp decline was primarily triggered by heightened global trade anxieties following reports that the US might raise tariffs on Indian goods by as much as 500% due to continued purchases of Russian oil. This “risk-off” sentiment was further exacerbated by persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) outflows and heavy selling in heavyweight sectors like IT, Metals, and Energy, with stocks like BHEL, Tech Mahindra, and Reliance Industries leading the laggards. Despite a positive domestic economic outlook—with the government’s first advance estimates projecting a 7.4% GDP growth for FY26—investors remained cautious, prioritizing global geopolitical risks and upcoming quarterly earnings over long-term fundamentals.
