BSE Sensex drops 750 points in worst session since March

INDIA, 22 JULY 2026 —

The benchmark BSE Sensex lost 750 points to close at 76,722 on Wednesday, its steepest decline since March, as investors fled equities on fresh US tariff threats, a flare-up in Middle East tensions and crude oil at a two-month high.

Trump’s new tariff roadmap for generic drugs imported into the US triggered the first wave of selling, with the levy jumping from 0% to 100% in August 2026 and doubling to 200% a year later. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer followed with a warning that additional tariffs on several countries could be announced within days when a temporary framework expires.

Geopolitical risks deepened after Iran launched a drone attack on what it called US ammunition storage in Kuwait and the US conducted its eleventh straight night of strikes on Iranian targets near Pickaxe Mountain, close to a key nuclear site. Iran vowed retaliation, raising the prospect of broader regional strikes.

Crude oil added to the strain, with Brent touching $92.67 a barrel, up four sessions in a row and the highest since mid-June. India’s import bill is set to rise further, stoking inflation and current-account fears while crimping corporate margins just as earnings season begins.

The rupee slid 11 paise to 96.36 per dollar as the dollar index climbed above 101 and the US 10-year Treasury yield jumped to 4.635%, up nine basis points in four sessions. Foreign investors, already wary of higher US yields, are expected to trim their Indian equity holdings, a dynamic that would compound the selloff in broader markets where the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 fell 1.5% apiece.

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