Rupee Hits Record Low, Equities Log Fifth Straight Weekly Loss

An end-of-day recap of all that transpired in the Indian markets, highlighting the major price movements and the factors driving them

India stocks fall, rupee fall

By Dehuti Jani

Dehuti Jani is an experienced project manager who also works as an independent financial journalist.

March 27, 2026 at 11:39 AM IST

Indian equity benchmarks declined for a fifth consecutive week on Friday, their longest losing streak in approximately eight months, as fraught West Asia ceasefire negotiations and elevated crude oil prices above $100 per barrel intensified foreign outflows and battered the rupee to a record low. The Nifty50 fell 2.09% or 486.85 points to 22,819.60, while the BSE Sensex slipped 2.25% or 1,690.25 points to 73,583.22, snapping a two-day recovery as mixed signals from the US and Iran over ongoing talks unnerved investors. India VIX spiked to 27.09, hovering at its highest since June 2024, as the rupee settled at a record low of 94.8125 per dollar, down 11% for the fiscal year while foreign portfolio outflows for the month reached a record $12.14 billion. President Trump extended his deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by 10 days, threatening destruction of Iranian energy plants, while Tehran rejected the US 15-point settlement proposal as unfair.

Broader markets also fell sharply, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty SmallCap 100 declining 2.24% and 1.88% respectively, though both outperformed the benchmarks on the day. Weekly losses for small-caps and mid-caps stood at 0.6% and 1.4% respectively. Among sectors, Nifty PSU Bank was the worst performer, followed by Nifty Realty and Nifty Auto, while Nifty IT was the best-performing sectoral index with the least losses, continuing its role as a relative safe-haven in the current environment. For the week, both indices lost approximately 1.3% and have now declined about 9.5% each since the US-Israeli war on Iran began on 28 February.

Top Movers of the Day

TCS traded 2% higher at ₹2,420 on the BSE amid heavy volumes, outperforming in an otherwise weak market with the Sensex down 1.6%.

ONGC rose up to 3% to ₹277.20 on the BSE amid heavy volumes, supported by a healthy business outlook and expectations of strong dividends following robust interim payouts in the first nine months of FY26.

HAL hit a fresh 52-week low of ₹3,580.10, falling nearly 3% on the BSE, as selling pressure continued in an otherwise weak broader market.

Reliance Industries fell 4% on both the BSE and NSE, hitting intraday lows of ₹1,356 and ₹1,357 respectively, as investors pressed the sell button on the heavyweight counter.

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles declined sharply, hitting a 52-week low, after reports emerged that Jaguar Land Rover had temporarily halted production at its Solihull plant in the UK.

HEG and Graphite India soared up to 14% on the BSE amid heavy volumes, bucking the weak broader market trend, as graphite electrode stocks attracted strong buying interest.

Oracle Financial Services Software jumped as much as 7% after the company entered into a definitive agreement with an existing customer, boosting investor confidence in its near-term revenue outlook.

IndiGo slipped 2.24% to an intraday low of ₹4,198.80 on the BSE, extending the pressure on aviation stocks amid the ongoing West Asia conflict and elevated fuel costs.

LIC declined around 3% to near ₹762, emerging among the key laggards amid selling pressure in financial stocks.

Tata Steel fell about 2%, due to intensified profit-booking, rising input costs, and weak sentiment in the global metals sector. Ongoing concerns regarding low steel demand in China, coupled with increased market volatility and higher open interest suggesting selling pressure, have driven the recent price decline.

Futures & Options
Nifty March 2026 futures closed at 22,801.70, a discount of 17.90 points to the spot Nifty, which fell 488.85 points or 2.09% to settle at 22,819.60 in the cash market. The futures trading at a discount to spot reflected deeply bearish sentiment, with traders unwilling to hold long positions heading into the weekend amid unresolved West Asia ceasefire negotiations and a record low rupee. India VIX rallied 8.77% to 26.80, its second consecutive session of sharp gains, keeping volatility expectations firmly elevated near their highest levels since June 2024 as the geopolitical and macroeconomic outlook remained deeply uncertain. HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries and Infosys were the most actively traded stock futures contracts in the F&O segment on the NSE. The March 2026 derivative contracts are set to expire on 30 March 2026.

Bonds
The Indian government bond yields surged to a 19-month high on Friday, with the benchmark 6.48% 2035 bond yield hitting an intraday peak of 6.9523%, its highest since July 2024 before closing at 6.9419%, sharply up from 6.8750% in the previous session. The selloff was triggered by New Delhi's excise duty cut on fuel, which clouded the fiscal outlook and deepened market anxiety already stoked by the war-driven oil price surge and heavy debt supply. The fiscal concerns compounded existing pressures from elevated crude prices and sustained state government bond issuance, pushing yields to levels that reflect a significant deterioration in India's near-term fiscal and inflation trajectory since the onset of the West Asia conflict.

Forex
The Indian rupee plunged to a fresh record low on Friday, breaching the 94 per dollar mark and declining 0.9% to close at 94.8125 after hitting an all-time low of 94.84, as mounting concerns over the energy crisis sparked by the West Asia war put the currency on track for its worst fiscal-year drop in more than a decade. The rupee has now fallen approximately 4% since the Iran war began at the end of February and is down 11% for the fiscal year, reflecting the severe and sustained toll of surging oil prices, foreign portfolio outflows and deteriorating macroeconomic fundamentals on Asia's third-largest economy.

Crypto
Crypto markets retreated on Friday as geopolitical uncertainty weighed heavily on risk appetite after Iran rejected the US settlement proposal, with Bitcoin falling nearly 3% to around $67,800 and slipping below the key $68,000 support level. Major altcoins bore the brunt of the selloff, with Ethereum, BNB and Solana dropping up to 4%, while Dogecoin also followed the broader downtrend. Bitcoin ETFs saw significant outflows as institutional investors adopted a cautious stance amid elevated inflation data and the prospect of tighter monetary policy. Adding to the energy supply concerns, Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil infrastructure disrupted a key workaround that markets had been relying on to partially offset supply shocks from the Iran war, reinforcing fears of persistent inflation and a more hawkish Federal Reserve path.

US Stock Futures
US stock futures slipped on Friday after President Trump further delayed promised strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure, prompting oil prices to rally as doubts grew over the prospects of a peace deal. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 0.2%, S&P 500 futures nudged down 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 0.2%, following steep losses on Wall Street in the previous session as the uncertain and drawn-out nature of the West Asia ceasefire negotiations continued to weigh on investor sentiment.

US Treasury Notes
Yields on US Treasury climbed to fresh multi-month highs on Friday, with the benchmark 10-year note hitting an eight-month high of approximately 4.46% as intensifying West Asia tensions and rising energy prices significantly bolstered inflation fears. The 2-year note yield climbed above 4.03%, reflecting heightened sensitivity to a hawkish shift in monetary policy expectations, as market participants grew increasingly sceptical of near-term rate cuts. In a stark departure from earlier 2026 expectations, some traders are now pricing in a potential Federal Reserve rate hike by December, underscoring how dramatically the energy-driven inflation shock has reshaped the outlook for US monetary policy.

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