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Sustain selling pressure drags Indian markets near day’s lows
May-12-2026

A continued selling pressure dragged Indian equity markets near their intraday low points in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading in deep red, tracking negative cues from other Asian markets. IT and Realty stocks were among the worst hit, with investors fretting about the potential impact of surging crude oil prices and a weakening rupee on the Indian economy. Adding more worries among traders, Moody's Ratings slashed India's GDP growth forecast for year 2026 by 0.8 percentage points to 6 per cent on subdued private consumption, capital formation, and industrial activity amid higher energy costs.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, after Japan's household spending declined for the fourth consecutive month in March despite rising wages. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said that household spending declined 2.9 percent on a yearly basis in March, sharper than the 1.8 percent fall in February. Spending has been falling since December. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 74994.67, down by 1020.61 points or 1.34% after trading in a range of 74943.42 and 75741.96. There were 2 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 0.59% and Energy up by 0.11%, while IT down by 3.63%, Realty down by 2.90%, TECK down by 2.36%, Consumer Durables down by 2.29% and Utilities down by 1.95% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The only gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 0.61% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.34%. On the flip side, TCS down by 4.00%, HCL Tech. down by 3.91%, Infosys down by 3.89%, Tech Mahindra down by 3.74% and Adani Ports & SEZ down by 3.20% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in its Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) has showed the unemployment rate among people aged 15 and above has declined marginally to 6.6% in January-March 2026 from 6.7% in October-December 2025. Further, the overall unemployment rate in urban areas exhibited declining trend during January-March 2026 compared to the last two quarters. In contrast, the joblessness in rural areas has edged up marginally to 4.3% in March quarter from 4.0% in October-December 2025. Meanwhile, regular wage/salaried employees in rural areas showed an upward movement at 15.5% during January-March 2026 from 14.8% in the previous quarter. The share of self-employed persons declined to 62.5% during the quarter from 63.2% in October-December 2025. In urban areas, the distribution of workers across different status remained broadly stable compared to the previous quarter.

The sectoral distribution of employment continues to exhibit similar structural pattern, with the rural workforce predominantly engaged in the primary sector and the urban workforce concentrated in the tertiary sector. In rural areas, the share of workers engaged in agriculture stood at 55.8% during March quarter, marking a decline from 58.5% in the previous quarter whereas share of employment in the tertiary sector rose from 20.6% in December quarter 2025 to 21.7% during January to March 2026. Further, the secondary sector along with mining and quarrying in rural areas witnessed a rise from 20.9% to 22.6% in March quarter, while in urban areas, the sectoral distribution of workers remained largely stable.

In March quarter, Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) remained steady. The overall LFPR among the age group was estimated at 55.5% in January-March 2026, compared to 55.8% in the previous quarter. In rural areas, LFPR was 58.2% in the quarter while it stood at 58.4% in October-December 2025. The Urban LFPR was 50.2% in January-March 2026 compared to 50.4% in the preceding quarter. Moreover, the overall Worker Population Ratio (WPR) stood at 52.8% in January-March 2026 compared to 53.1% in October-December 2025. While rural WPR marginally declined to 55.7% from 56.1% in the previous quarter, urban WPR maintained its stability at 46.9% as compared to 47.1%.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23516.20, down by 299.65 points or 1.26% after trading in a range of 23508.35 and 23757.55. There were 5 stocks advancing against 45 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were ONGC up by 5.43%, Hindalco up by 1.59%, NTPC up by 0.59%, Eicher Motors up by 0.38% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.25%. On the flip side, TCS down by 4.05%, Infosys down by 3.93%, HCL Tech. down by 3.90%, Tech Mahindra down by 3.72% and Shriram Finance down by 3.42% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; KOSPI dropped 179.09 points or 2.34% to 7,643.15, Hang Seng declined 72.84 points or 0.28% to 26,334.00, Shanghai Composite weakened 10.53 points or 0.25% to 4,214.49, Jakarta Composite plunged 133.1 points or 1.97% to 6,772.52 and Straits Times fell 4.17 points or 0.08% to 4,938.60, while Taiwan Weighted added 108.26 points or 0.26% to 41,898.32 and Nikkei 225 surged 265.12 points or 0.42% to 62,683.00.
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