Sensex, Nifty fall for 2nd day on selling in Axis Bank, Indo-Pak border tensions

Stock market plunges as geopolitical tensions rise, with Sensex and Nifty dropping significantly due to profit-taking and border concerns.

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined sharply on Friday (April 25, 2025) due to selling in Axis Bank and growing tensions along the Indo-Pak border following the terror attack at Pahalgam in Jammu & Kashmir.

Wiping out early gains, the 30-share BSE barometer tanked 588.90 points or 0.74% to settle at 79,212.53. During the day, it dropped 1,195.62 points or 1.49% to 78,605.81.

Falling for the second day, the NSE Nifty tumbled 207.35 points or 0.86% to 24,039.35.

Experts said worries over growing geopolitical tensions after Tuesday's Pahalgam terror attack weighed on market sentiment.

All sectoral indices except for IT index closed in the red while midcap and smallcap indices dropped more than 2% due to profit taking.

"Investor sentiment turned cautious amid escalating tensions along the Indo-Pak border. Mid and smallcap stocks bore the brunt of the sell-off, driven by their elevated valuations and growing concerns over potential earnings downgrades following a muted start to the earnings season," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

Among Sensex shares, Adani Ports, Axis Bank, Eternal, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid, Maruti, Bajaj Finance, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and NTPC were the biggest laggards.