The BSE Sensex slid as much as 664 points intraday to a low of 82,581.69, while the NSE Nifty 50 fell 0.9% to an intraday trough of 25,349.35, slipping below the 25,400 mark for the first time since November 2025.
The decline marked a second straight session of losses, reflecting fragile sentiment amid mixed corporate earnings, persistent foreign fund outflows and lingering global trade uncertainty. Markets opened largely flat, with the Sensex down just 16 points at 83,230.38 and the Nifty lower by 13 points at 25,572.65, but selling pressure intensified as the session progressed, led by sharp losses in information technology stocks.
The market capitalization of all listed companies on the BSE fell by Rs 6.79 lakh crore to Rs 458 lakh crore.
Here are the key factors behind today’s market fall:
1. IT stocks drag benchmarks lower
Information technology shares bore the brunt of the selloff, pushing benchmarks to their lowest levels in over two months. The Nifty IT index slid 2%, emerging as the worst-performing sector of the day, with all constituents trading in the red.
Wipro fell nearly 3%, extending Monday’s decline after the company flagged a weaker-than-expected outlook for the fourth quarter. LTIMindtree tumbled nearly 6% after reporting a drop in quarterly profit, citing a one-off impact from newly enacted labour codes.The tepid start to the earnings season has raised fresh concerns about the pace of corporate profit recovery, especially in export-oriented sectors such as IT.
“An area of concern is that early Q3 results do not indicate a recovery in earnings growth. This is likely to change when the results of auto companies start flowing in since this sector has done well in Q3 and it is heartening that the growth momentum is continuing in the sector,” said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments.
2. Subdued global sentiment amid fresh tariff worries
Global sentiment remained fragile, adding pressure on domestic equities, as renewed trade tensions rattled risk appetite across markets. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.3% after US President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs on eight European Union member states, in a bid to assert greater US control over Greenland—a move investors see as reopening fault lines in transatlantic trade relations.
The unease spilled over into US markets, with Nasdaq and S&P 500 futures down about 1%. Meanwhile, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury rose to 4.265%, its highest level since early September, reflecting persistent concerns over higher-for-longer interest rates, even as the dollar continued to weaken.
Market volatility is likely to persist in the near term until greater clarity emerges on the US–Europe standoff over Greenland-linked tariffs. With both sides hardening their positions, uncertainty is expected to linger, said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments. He added that “a new development is possible today if a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Trump-era tariffs goes against the President. However, there is no certainty on whether the ruling will come today. If it does, it could change the scenario completely overnight.”
3. Persistent foreign outflows
Sustained selling by foreign investors continued to weigh on market sentiment, with foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extending their net selling streak to a tenth consecutive session. On Monday, January 19, FIIs offloaded equities worth nearly Rs 3,263 crore, underscoring continued caution amid heightened global trade and geopolitical uncertainty.
The selling by overseas investors, however, was partly offset by domestic institutions. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of equities worth about Rs 4,234 crore on the same day, providing limited support to the broader market but falling short of arresting the decline in benchmark indices.
4. Flight to safe havens: gold and silver
A sharp rally in precious metals signalled rising risk aversion across global markets, as investors rushed into safe-haven assets amid escalating trade tensions. Gold surged past $4,700 per ounce for the first time on Tuesday, while silver hovered near record highs after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened additional tariffs on European allies, further souring global sentiment.
Spot gold rose 1% to $4,717.03 per ounce by 0730 GMT, after touching an all-time high of $4,721.91 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures for February delivery climbed 2.8% to $4,722.70 per ounce. Silver, meanwhile, eased 0.5% to $94.23 an ounce after hitting a record high of $94.72 earlier in the day.
Silver has started 2026 on a blistering note, gaining more than 35%, or nearly Rs 85,000, in domestic markets, supported by supply constraints and heightened geopolitical tensions involving the U.S., Iran and Greenland. The rally gathered further momentum this week after MCX silver futures breached the psychological Rs 3 lakh-per-kg mark. In Tuesday’s session, prices jumped over 2.5%, or nearly Rs 8,000, to Rs 3,19,949 per kg.
5. Technical indicators point to a fragile market
Technical signals suggested that while benchmarks found near-term support, the broader market structure remains vulnerable. Analysts highlighted key levels that could determine whether the recent correction stabilises or deepens further.
“The close back above the lower Bollinger band, having taken support near the recent low of 25,473, is encouraging. For now, we will set aside fears of a potential fall to the 200-day SMA, presently at 25,115. However, an inability to sustain above 25,550 could force us to abandon upside hopes,” said Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit Investments.
“Technically, after an early-morning intraday selloff, the market took support near 25,500/82,900 and trimmed some losses. However, the short-term market texture remains weak. On daily charts, it has formed a bearish candle, and on intraday charts, it is holding a weak formation, which is largely negative,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities.
Chouhan added that “a fresh selloff is possible only if 25,450/82,800 is breached. Below this level, the market could slip to 25,350–25,250/82,500–82,200.” On the upside, “above 25,675/83,550, a pullback could extend to 25,800–25,900/84,000–84,300,” while cautioning that “the intraday market texture remains volatile and non-directional; hence, level-based trading would be the ideal strategy for day traders.”