Investors continue selling as PM Modi signals crisis readiness

India’s equity investors sold stocks for the fourth consecutive trading day, pulling Nifty 50 and Sensex down by over 1.8% closing at 23,379.55 and 74,559.24 points on May 12, 2026.

Investors have been responding to the constant depreciation of the currency, which closed at a new low of ₹95.6 a dollar.

Further, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to rescue foreign exchange-guzzling purchases may have triggered the sale further. Brent Crude futures, the measure for global oil prices, increased 3.7% to $107.4 on Tuesday (May 12, 2026).

The market rout was broad-based, with 2750 stocks declining on the Nifty 50 and just 590 advancing. Further, all 21 sector-based indices declined with many of them crashing by more than 2%.

Foreign Institutional Investor interest in Indian equities, measured by the net outflows, has been hitting new lows, crossing over ₹2 lakh crore as of May 12, 2026.

“Unless there is any meaningful progress in negotiations or signs of de-escalation in the West Asia conflict, volatility and weakness in domestic equities are likely to persist,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.