Another market fall with no ripcord to pull? Here's what the data say

If fall isn't arrested, this will be second time in three months the Sensex would have chalked up negative returns

The Indian markets are headed for their third straight monthly fall, with February returns slipping into negative terrain after six uninterrupted days of losses that saw the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex tailing off 3 per cent. The index is now down close to 6 per cent since December last year. 

In the past decade, the Sensex has dropped only on five occasions for three or more consecutive months.

If the market fails to recover in the remaining two sessions of this calendar month, this will be the second time in a post-pandemic era that the Sensex would have logged negative returns for three solid months. 

Earlier on, the index had dropped 9 per cent between April and June of last year. However, in the subsequent two months, the index bounced back more than 12 per cent.

After Covid-19, any market dip — like the one seen now — has proven to be a good buying opportunity for investors. What will be fascinating to watch is if this is nothing but a decoy for buyers.