The Sensex had a strong start, surging to an intra-day high of 74,741, gaining 407 points. However, as selling pressure intensified in the final hours, the index tumbled over 700 points from its peak to touch a low of 74.022. The late sell-off was triggered by weak cues from US stock futures, where the Dow Jones futures slipped 400 points and Nasdaq futures declined over 1 per cent. The market witnessed heavy selling pressure, with more than 2,700 stocks declining on the BSE, compared to just over 1,100 advancing stocks. Among the major losers in the Nifty were Reliance Industries, IndusInd Bank, Trent, ONGC, Eicher Motors, and Bajaj Auto. On the other hand, Power Grid Corporation, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Infosys, SBI Life, and Nestle India managed to post gains. The BSE Midcap index dropped by 1.5 per cent, while the Smallcap index fell by 2.1 per cent; most indices ended in the negative territory, except for FMCG, which showed some resilience.