The Sensex crashed 927 points on Wednesday, with investors spooked by rising tensions between the US and Russia and with retail inflation rising once again. Investors lost money on all Adani stocks even as the selling pressure pulled down the rupee by six paise to 82.86 to the dollar. The broader Nifty ended at a four-month low on Wednesday.

Markets were on the edge as the minutes of the meeting of US Federal Reserve is due later tonight. The Fed is expected to indicate how many more hikes will be needed to control inflation.

They were also awaiting the release of the minutes of the last monetary policy committee meeting of the RBI amid misgivings that the RBI’s tightening would last longer because of the unexpected spike in retail inflation, which accelerated to 6.52 per cent in January.

The 30-share Sensex started on a weak note at 60391.86 on negative global cues and did not find any major buying support. The selling accentuated towards the last two hours of trade and the gauge hit a low of 59681.55 — a fall of 991.17 points. It settled with losses of 927.74 points, or 1.53 per cent, at 59744.98, the lowest closing level since February 1. As many as 29 of the Sensex stocks declined with ITC being the lone gainer.

The 50-share NSE Nifty declined 272.40 points, or 1.53 per cent, to end at a fourmonth low of 17554.30. “Resurgence of the Cold War between the US and Russia has brought apprehension in the market. Although it should be a short-term effect, the fear of sanctions against Russia and its degree of implication on the economy, especially on food and oil exports, is adding to the anxiety. “Awaiting the release of Fed and RBI minutes are the other elements that kept investors on the sidelines,” said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services.

Bajaj Finance was the top loser in the Sensex pack as it crashed 2.86 per cent to Rs 6,198.60. It was followed by M&M, Bajaj Finserv, RIL, HDFC and HDFC Bank, which cracked up to 2.45 per cent. Shares of Adani Group firms fell sharply on Wednesday, with all the listed firms ending in the negative territory.

The 10 listed firms suffered a combined erosion of Rs 51,294.04 crore in their market valuation on Wednesday. Many of the group firms also hit their lower circuit limits in the morning trade.

Sri Lanka deal win

Sri Lanka on Wednesday approved two wind power plants by Adani Green Energy with a total investment of $442 million, a statement issued by the board said. “The two wind power plants of 350MW are scheduled to be commissioned in two years and accordingly, they will be added to the national grid by 2025,” the statement added.

Adani Transmission will announce debt refinancing plans in a few weeks, executives said on Tuesday in an investor call, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter. The company has no plans to raise additional debt for capital expenditure, which it plans to cover with operating cash inflows, the executives said, according to the source. The group had hired banks to arrange calls with bond investors to reassure them about the payment capacity of its operating companies after it was caught up in a short-selling storm in recent weeks.

With inputs from Reuters