Nifty Plunges 495 Points After STT Hike, FIIs Return to Pressure Markets

• Indian equity markets experienced a sharp sell-off during the Union Budget session following Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's announcement of a steep hike (up to 150%) in Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on Futures and Options trades.
• The Nifty 50 plunged 869 points from its intraday high, closing 495 points lower at 24,825, its lowest in four months and the steepest single-day percentage decline since April 7, 2025.
• The unexpected STT hike, aimed at curbing retail speculation, wiped out nearly ₹11 lakh crore in market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies.
• Only the Nifty IT index closed in the green; PSU Banks, Metals, and Oil & Gas sectors saw significant declines due to various factors including higher government borrowing targets and commodity price drops.
• Technical analysis suggests Nifty has broken below its consolidation range and 200-day SMA/EMA, indicating a potential positional downtrend with immediate support at 24,571 and 24,337.

Why It Matters: Nifty suffered a major setback due to an unexpected STT hike, leading to significant market capitalization loss.