On Thursday, the Indian stock market opened in negative territory, with the Sensex declining over 300 points to trade below the 74,100 mark, and Nifty falling over 50 points to below 23,350. This downturn is attributed to persistent foreign institutional investor (FII) selling and increased geopolitical tensions, particularly in West Asia. The India VIX, which measures market volatility, rose by 6% to 16.28. Major stocks such as Infosys, ICICI Bank, and Reliance Industries were among the top losers, each experiencing declines of up to 1%. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, noted that the market faces more headwinds than tailwinds, emphasizing that the ongoing uncertainty in the region is a significant factor hindering market recovery. In currency news, the Indian rupee gained 7 paise to reach 95.69 against the US dollar, although concerns over high oil prices continue to affect market sentiment. Investors are advised to adopt a cautious approach in this volatile environment.