Nifty below 23,250; realty shares tumble

The key equity benchmarks traded with major losses in mid-morning trade, mirroring sharp declines in global markets following the US Federal Reserve?s policy outcome. Investor sentiment remained subdued amid concerns over elevated crude oil prices, which continued to weigh on risk appetite. The Nifty traded below the 23,250 mark. Realty shares declined after advancing in the past two trading sessions.

At 11:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 1,783.12 points or 2.32% to 74,921.01. The Nifty 50 index lost 538.60 points or 2.27% to 23,239.20.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index dropped 2.08% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index fell 1.82%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,054 shares rose and 2,790 shares fell. A total of 179 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 15.39% to 21.61.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Realty index tumbled 3.06% to 708.45. The index dropped 4.55% in the past two trading sessions.

Godrej Properties (down 3.76%), DLF (down 3.4%), Anant Raj (down 3.23%), Brigade Enterprises (down 3.08%), Prestige Estates Projects (down 2.97%), SignatureGlobal India (down 2.94%), Lodha Developers (down 2.77%), Oberoi Realty (down 2.53%), Sobha (down 2.48%) and Phoenix Mills (down 1.98%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Zydus Lifesciences declined 1.66%. The company announced the launch of Aerolife Mini, a next-generation pressurized metered-dose inhaler (pMDI) enhancer, marking a key step in the company?s strategy to drive drug-device-led innovation in respiratory care.

Modis Navnirman rose 1.83% after the company announced the commencement of construction of its residential project 'Rashmi Avenue' in Dahisar (West), Mumbai.

Texmaco Rail & Engineering fell 2.31%. The company said that it has secured an order worth Rs 51.45 crore from North Eastern Railway for electrification and power supply works.

Global Markets:

Asian markets traded lower on Thursday, tracking losses on Wall Street that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average touch a new closing low for the year.

The Bank of Japan kept the interest rates steady at 0.75% but noted that inflation risks now are tilted to the upside due to the Iran war.

Malaysia?s annual inflation eased to 1.4% in February 2026 from 1.6% in January, coming in below market expectations of 1.6% and marking the lowest level since November. The moderation was driven by slower price increases across key segments, including food, health and education. Core inflation also softened to 2% from 2.3%, the lowest in six months. On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose 0.2% in February, compared with a 0.1% rise in the previous month.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2026 settlement rallied $3.85, or 3.59% to $111.23 a barrel.

Overnight in the U.S., the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial lost 1.63%, ending at 46,225.15, reaching a new low this year. The index also closed below its 200-day moving average. The S&P 500 fell 1.36%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.46%.

The Federal Reserve held its key policy rate steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, with Chair Jerome Powell watering down rate-cut expectations, saying that inflation was not coming down as much as ?hoped.?

The U.S. central bank?s ?dot plot? projects a cut in 2026 and another in 2027, even though the timing is unclear.

The producer price index?which tracks the change in wholesale prices?rose 0.7% in February, well above the 0.3% that economists polled by Dow Jones had estimated.

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