Published 11:17 IST, March 16th 2020
Sensex loses over 1600 points, Nifty plunges by 4.5% as markets react to Coronavirus panic
Equity indices nosedived by nearly 4.5 percent on Monday responding to the panic around the Coronavirus epidemic which crossed over a 110 cases in the country.
Equity indices nosedived by nearly 4.5 percent during opening on Monday responding to the panic around the Coronavirus epidemic which crossed over 100 cases in the country on Sunday. This follows soon after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates to near-zero a day earlier to help shore up US' tanking economy.
The BSE S&P Sensex plunged by 1,575 points which is nearly 4.62 percent to 32,529 while the Nifty 50 cracked by 449 points or 4.51 percent to 9,506. A few days ago Sensex and Nifty had plunged to a three-year low and trading had to be halted for 45 minutes after the lower-circuit limit was breached.
All sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the red with Nifty private bank and financial service down by 7 percent each, realty by 6.7 percent, metal by 5.9 percent, and IT by 4.9 percent.
Effect on top companies
Amongst the stocks of top companies, IndusInd Bank dropped by a drastic 11 percent at Rs 714 per share. ICICI Bank lost by 8.4 per cent and Axis Bank by 8 per cent while HDFC and Bajaj Finance dipped by 8.3 per cent and 7.4 per cent respectively. The other prominent losers were Adani Ports, Titan, Vedanta, UPL and Tata Steel. Ironically, however, there was one company that recorded a strong and steady gain amidst the bloodbath and that was Yes Bank which surged by 48.14 percent to Rs 37.85 per share despite reporting a net loss of Rs 18,564 crore for the Q3 FY20 quarter.
High volatility in global markets
Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus in the Chinese province of Wuhan, global markets have been severely hit with the standstill in trade. Analysts have stated that there is heightened volatility in global markets amid concerns over the rapidly-spreading coronavirus and sinking crude prices with them intending to sell-off.
As per the latest figures, at least 110 confirmed cases of COVID19 have been reported pan-India. Several core sectors like led by financial, metal and energy stocks have been hit particularly - Reliance Industries shares have slumped by 11% - its worst single-day fall in at least 10 years.
(With Agency Inputs)
Updated 11:17 IST, March 16th 2020