Hit hard by the unfavourable macro environment, the domestic stock index Nifty fell below the 17,000-point mark for the first time since July 28 on Monday, hitting a daily low of 16,978.30 points. However, the index showed resistance at the psychological level of 17,000 and quickly breached that mark later in the day.

Nifty climbed down from 18,000 to 17,000 in just eight sessions. The index closed at 18,003.75 on September 14, 2022. Barring two positive closes, the index is under pressure for all remaining sessions.

Three nifty heavyweights – Reliance, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank – were the biggest drags on the index during the period, accounting for about a third of the 1,000-point loss. Small and mid-cap indices were the hardest hit, with both indexes down more than 3%.

Kranthi Bathini, the equity strategist at Wealth Mills Securities, said selling pressure would be limited as foreign institutional investors have already pulled a lot of money from Indian markets. “Domestic institutional investors can provide support at any time because they are sitting on cash all the time,” he said.