Your emergency fund sitting in a savings account at 3%?
Your emergency fund sitting in a savings account at 3%? That's actually costing you ₹6,000/year on ₹2L. → Arbitrage funds offer 6.5-7% post-tax → Same day liquidity → No lock-in → Indexation after 3 years Better than FD for 6-12 month money. Salaried rule: → 6 months expenses
Market Snapshot — Close
Day Change
This Week's Lesson
Geopolitics still trumps earnings. The week opened on hopes of US-Iran de-escalation, but a Strait of Hormuz blockade sent Brent crude screaming higher and dragged the Sensex down 982.71 points (-1.27%) on Friday to 76,681.29, with Nifty 50 closing below 24,000 at 23,897.95 (-1.14%). Lesson: an Indian portfolio that prices in only domestic earnings without a buffer for crude shocks is half-built. Energy importers like India bleed first when the Persian Gulf coughs.
The Numbers That Matter
- Nifty 50 closed Friday at 23,897.95, down 275.10 points; it was the worst week in months.
- Sensex ended at 76,681.29, shedding nearly 1,000 points in a single session.
- Bank Nifty, India VIX, S&P 500, DXY and Brent crude exact closes: data unavailable in this session's pull — assume VIX spiked and Brent surged on the Hormuz news.
- FIIs sold ₹8,827.87 crore on April 24; DIIs absorbed ₹4,700.71 crore — the domestic cushion is half the foreign exit, not full.
- IT was the worst sector — Infosys -7%, with TCS and Tech Mahindra dragging the Nifty IT index lower on disappointing Q4 commentary.
Action Checklist
- Check your equity-to-debt mix. If you are above 75% equity and within 3 years of a goal, shift the next SIP tranche into a short-duration debt fund this Monday.
- Pull up your portfolio's IT sector weight. If Infosys + TCS + HCLTech together exceed 15% of your direct equity, you took a real hit Friday — decide whether it's conviction or concentration.
- Top up your emergency fund to cover 6 months of expenses in a sweep-FD or liquid fund. Crude-driven inflation is the next worry.
- Verify your term insurance cover is at least 20x annual income — premiums reset with age, not with the Nifty.
Common Mistake to Avoid
Doubling down on IT largecaps just because Infosys fell 7% in one day. "Buying the dip" on a sector facing a structural client-spend slowdown is not value investing — it's anchoring to the 52-week high. Wait for two consecutive quarters of guidance upgrades before averaging down. A ₹1 lakh tranche deployed blindly on Friday's close could see another 10-15% drawdown if Q1 FY27 commentary stays cautious.
One Thing to Do This Weekend
Open your CAS (Consolidated Account Statement) from CDSL or NSDL — it lands free in your email monthly. Add up your exposure to crude-sensitive sectors (paints, tyres, aviation, OMCs) versus IT exporters. If both are over-weighted, you are doubly exposed to the Hormuz story. Rebalance one position on Monday's open.
Sources: - [Market Close: Sensex slumps 1,000 points, Nifty ends below 23,900](https://www.business-standard.com/markets/news/stock-market-live-april-24-nse-bse-sensex-today-nifty-gift-nifty-us-iran-war-ril-q4-results-adani-energy-solutions-126042400104_1.html) - [Worst week in months! Sensex sheds 982 points on Friday](https://www.theweek.in/news/biz-tech/2026/04/24/indian-stock-market-plummets.html) - [BSE SENSEX Slumps Nearly 1,000 Points as Oil Price Surge and IT Earnings Disappointments Rock Indian Markets](https://www.bbntimes.com/global-economy/bse-sensex-slumps-nearly-1-000-points-as-oil-price-surge-and-it-earnings-disappointments-rock-indian-markets)