Why is Indian stock market crashing?

The Sensex crashed by nearly 3,000 points, and the Nifty fell below the crucial 22,000 level which wiped out lakhs of crores in investor wealth.

At noon, the Sensex was trading at 72,385.4, down 2,979 points or 3.95 per cent, while the Nifty dropped 976.1 points or 4.26 per cent to 21,928.3.

The key trigger behind Monday's crash was the intensifying trade conflict between the world's two largest economies.

After the US announced sweeping tariff hikes, China hit back with retaliatory duties on several American products.

The tit-for-tat moves have raised fears of a prolonged trade war, which could derail global economic growth and disrupt manufacturing and supply chains.

Investors across the world are growing increasingly worried that the trade tensions will slow down global demand, raise costs for businesses, and eat into corporate profits.

The fear of a global recession has further spooked investors.

The uncertainty has triggered heavy selling across equity markets, with Asia bearing the brunt of the panic.

Japan's Nikkei tumbled 7 per cent, South Korea's Kospi fell 5 per cent, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng crashed over 10.5 per cent.

The negative sentiment spilled into India, where all 13 sectoral indices on the BSE were trading in the red.

The Nifty Metal index plunged 8 per cent, while Nifty IT dropped more than 7 per cent amid worries over US exposure.

Auto, realty, and oil and gas sectors also saw declines of over 5 per cent each. The sell-off was more severe in the broader market, where mid-cap and small-cap indices lost 7.3 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively.

Top losers on the Sensex included Tata Steel, down nearly 10 per cent, followed by Tata Motors, Infosys, L&T, and Tech Mahindra, each falling between 6 per cent and 8 per cent.