The Indian stock market crashed on Thursday, with Nifty hitting the lowest level since April 2025 as RBI policy tightening, persistent FII selling and other factors spooked investors.

The Nifty 50 sank to a fresh 52-week low of 22,179, before recovering some losses to close at 22,232. Sensex meanwhile plunged more than 1,045 points to close at 71,593. The sharp sell-off wiped out more than Rs 10 lakh crore from the total market capitalisation of companies listed on the BSE, taking it to Rs 461 lakh crore.

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Here's how analysts read the market pulse

"The domestic market continued on its sharp sell-off mode as the ripple effects of hawkish RBI policy weighed on rate-sensitive sectors, effectively resetting near-term valuation multiples. This headwind was further amplified by persistent FII outflows, harder bond yields, and a depreciating INR. Moreover, volatile crude oil prices hovering stubbornly above the $100 mark continue to be a hurdle for the national economy. The favourable high-frequency data underscores a resilient domestic economy while the likelihood of additional rate hikes keeps equity valuations compressed. Mid- and small-cap counters lagged amid margin concerns and tactical profit booking. Looking ahead, the market focus shifts to the Q2 earnings season, where management commentary on demand sustainability and input cost absorption will provide critical near-term direction,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.

US stocks edged lower on Thursday as soaring oil prices and Treasury yields near multi-year highs stoked inflation worries on the cusp of a critical earnings season expected to test recent market gains.

Brent crude futures jumped 4.2% to more than $104 a barrel on persistent worries about supply from the Middle East after increasing attacks on shipping in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.

The bond market rout showed no sign of abating as the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond stood at 5.29%, close to its highest mark since 2002.

Risk assets around the world took a hit on Thursday. Megacap growth stocks were broadly lower, with Amazon.com, Tesla and Nvidia down between 0.3% and 1.3%.

Chip-related companies also eased, with Marvell Technology and Intel losing about 3% apiece and AMD down 2%.

The pan-European STOXX 600 fell as much as 1% to its lowest since June before clawing back roughly half of the ground, while the CAC-40's drop in Paris left it 12% down from an August record high.

European banks suffered as well, with the finance index down nearly 1.5% by mid-afternoon as Deutsche Bank , Santander, Societe Generale and Unicredit all fell for a second day.

A whole flock of European Central Bank policymakers also issued fresh inflation warnings to feed the debate on its next move, while oil prices reared up more than 4% too following an increase in attacks on shipping in the Gulf.

Also read | Nifty hits 52-week low. What technical charts indicate

Most active stocks in terms of turnover

Paytm (Rs 2,826 crore), HDFC Bank (Rs 1,863 crore), RIL (Rs 1,654 crore), ICICI Bank (Rs 1,522 crore), Infosys (Rs 1,488 crore), IFCI (Rs 1,462 crore) and BSE (Rs 1,452 crore) were among the most active stocks on NSE in value terms. Higher activity in a counter in value terms can help identify the counters with the highest trading turnovers in the day.

Most active stocks in volume terms

Vodafone Idea (Traded shares: 29.65 crore), IFCI (Traded shares: 21.62 crore), Ola Electric (Traded shares: 16.39 crore), Suzlon Energy (Traded shares: 8.57 crore), Yes Bank (Traded shares: 6.27 crore), GMR Infra (Traded shares: 5.59 crore) and ITC (Traded shares: 5.37 crore) were among the most actively traded stocks in volume terms on NSE.

LIC Housing Finance, IFCI, Cupid, Firstsource, NTPC Green, ICICI Lombard and Deepak Nitrite were among the stocks that witnessed strong buying interest from market participants.

Among the ones which hit their 52-week highs on NSE included Cupid and Finolex Cables.

Stocks which witnessed significant selling pressure were Adani Green, Tega Industries, Jubilant Food, Inox Wind, Engineers India, Tube Investments and Anupam Rasayan.

Among the ones which hit their 52-week lows on NSE included Inox Wind, NCC, Suzlon Energy, PI Industries, Vedanta Aluminium, Godfrey Philips and Swiggy.

Out of the 3,690 stocks that traded on the NSE on October 8, Thursday, 660 stocks witnessed advances, 2,950 stocks saw declines while 112 stocks remained unchanged.

Also read | HDFC Bank shares drop 15% in 3 months since Q1 results. Will Q2 earnings bring redemption as leadership cloud clears?

Disclaimer: This article has been written by Debaroti Adhikary, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Debaroti Adhikary and his/her ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclaimershere