New Delhi, Sept. 21 -- The year 2026 has so far been a challenging one for Dalal Street bulls, with markets navigating multiple headwinds, including elevated crude oil prices, persistent selling by overseas investors, a record-low rupee, limited exposure to AI, and subdued domestic market drivers.

These headwinds have dragged the headline indices into double-digit losses, putting them on track for their first annual decline in a decade. Hopes of a recovery in the final quarter of the year have now weakened as the global interest-rate cycle has turned tighter, a development that could influence local equities through multiple channels.

The latest rate hikes by global central banks have put the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the spotlight...