At 13:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 760.75 points or 1.04% to 72,373.57. The Nifty 50 index slipped 224.65 points or 0.99% to 22,445.25.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index declined 1.35% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index slipped 0.91%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,866 shares rose and 2,130 shares fell. A total of 198 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, added 4.09% to 26.04.

Economy:

India's manufacturing activity eased to 53.9 in March 2026, down from 56.9 in February, according to the latest Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data released on April 2.

The reading marks a 45-month low, with the last comparable level seen in September 2021 (53.7), indicating a moderation in manufacturing momentum.

The March print also reverses the uptrend seen earlier in 2026, when PMI rose from 55.0 in December to 55.4 in January and 56.9 in February.

While the index remained in the 55'59 range during 2024'2025, with peaks above 59, the latest decline suggests softening demand conditions and rising input cost pressures. The moderation comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions and elevated crude oil prices, which have begun to weigh on business sentiment and cost structures.

Gainers & Losers:

HCL Technologies (up 2.04%), Tech Mahindra (up 1.32%), Wipro (up 0.89%) and Nestle India (up 0.88%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.

ETERNAL (down 4.49%), Asian Paints (down 3.16%), Jio Financial Services (down 2.81%), Eicher Motors (down 2.80%) and Adani Enterprises (down 2.70%) were the major Nifty50 losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Dhanlaxmi Bank rose 0.31%. The bank reported 23.96% jump in gross advances to Rs 15,130 crore as of 31 March 2026 as against Rs 12,206 crore as of 31 March 2025.

Maruti Suzuki India shed 0.60%. The company reported 19% increase in total production to 2,31,933 units in March 2026, compared with 1,94,901 units produced in March 2025.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) fell 2.32%. The company reported strong operational performance for the latest fiscal period, posting a 4% growth in consolidated sales of petroleum products to 104.4 million tonnes (MT), up from 100.3 MT in the same period last year.

Karnataka Bank fell 3.41%. The bank reported a 3.8% rise in aggregate deposits to Rs 108,840.95 crore as on 31 March 2026 from Rs 104,807.49 crore as on 31 March 2025.

Global Markets:

European stocks opened sharply lower on Thursday, as fears of escalation in the U.S.-Iran war gripped global markets once again.

Switzerland's inflation rose 0.3% YoY in March 2026, below expectations but higher than February's 0.1%, marking the highest level since March 2025. The rise was driven by housing and energy costs, while declines in food and transport limited gains. On a monthly basis, CPI increased 0.2%, easing from 0.6% in February, while core inflation remained unchanged at 0.4% YoY.

Asian markets reversed gains as investors assess an address by President Donald Trump on the Iran war.

During his speech, Trump reiterated that the U.S. objectives in Iran were almost met and said that 'we have all the cards' in the conflict. He also said that Washington will hit Iran 'very hard' over the next two to three weeks.

Early Wednesday stateside, Trump claimed that Iran's 'New Regime President' had asked the U.S. for a ceasefire, a claim that Tehran reportedly has denied.

Trump added that the U.S. will 'consider' the offer only once the Strait of Hormuz was 'open, free, and clear,' he said on social media platform.

Trump previously said he was willing to end the U.S. military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remained closed, according to a media report.

Overnight on Wall Street, stocks rose on Wednesday, while oil prices declined to start the month, as hope grew that an end to the U.S.-Iran war was on the horizon.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.72% and closed at 6,575.32, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.16% and settled at 21,840.95. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 224.23 points, or 0.48%, to end at 46,565.74.