West Asia war has sent Sensex tumbling 900 points, the worst weekly fall in over a year.
Rupee is at all-time low of ₹92.39, oil back above $100 as energy fears mount.
LPG hike of up to ₹144 has hit restaurants hard, experts say Zomato profits may take a 7% knock.
Indian stock markets took a heavy beating on Friday, with the Sensex crashing over 900 points at the opening bell and the Nifty slipping below 23,400. By 11:40 AM, the Sensex was down 672 points and the Nifty had fallen 238 points.
The markets are on course for their worst weekly fall in over a year. The biggest losers of the day include Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), UltraTech Cement, and Bharat Electronics.
2 March 2026
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What's Driving the Fall?
Several factors are piling on at once. The ongoing war between Iran and the US-Israel alliance has rattled global markets, with every major index in the red worldwide.
Oil prices have bounced back above $100 a barrel after a brief dip earlier in the week. The Indian rupee has slid to an all-time low of ₹92.39 against the dollar, driven by fears over energy supply.
Adding to the pressure, Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) have been pulling money out of Indian markets for ten straight days. FII/FPI sold ₹22,422.92 crore as of March 12.
What Are Experts Saying?
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said that global markets are in "uncharted territory" and a recovery is still some time away. He advised investors to stay calm and stick to systematic investments. Vijaykumar also pointed out that the pharmaceuticals sector is holding up well, and may actually benefit from a weaker rupee since it is a major export-driven industry.
Capital markets firm Elara Capital offered a note of cautious optimism, saying that unless oil stays above $100 for several quarters, the current turbulence is likely to be short-lived and could even be a buying opportunity for patient investors.
Sunny Agrawal, Head of Fundamental Research at SBI Securities said that the long term growth story of Indian equity market is intact as per history. "Historical data suggests that after a period of no returns for 17 months, equities have delivered fabulous returns over the next 6 months to 3 years," he said.
"Investors should use this opportunity to deploy long term capital in equities in the quality fundamentally sound businesses across large, mid and Smallcaps. Sectors which are likely to outperform are BFSI, Auto/Auto Ancillary, Consumer Discretionary, New Age Businesses, Power/Power Ancillary etc," Agrawal added.
The West Asia conflict has made its way into everyday life. Domestic LPG cylinders (14.2 kg) have gone up by ₹60, while commercial cylinders (19 kg) have seen a steeper hike of ₹144. This is hurting restaurants and hotels hardest, as they depend heavily on commercial gas for daily cooking. Many eateries in major cities have already dropped items like chapati, dosa, and pooris from their menus. Some are on the verge of shutting down entirely.
Food delivery platforms Zomato and Swiggy are not seeing a drop in orders yet, but Elara Capital warned that short-term pressure is coming. In a worst-case scenario, if the disruption lasts 20 days, Zomato could see a 3.7% dip in order volumes and a 7.1% impact on its operating profits for the quarter.
