Barometers drift lower; NSE VIX hits 23-mark

The equity barometers declined further in early afternoon trade amid intense selling pressure. The Nifty was trading near the 14,300 mark. Weakness in auto and banks stocks put pressure on the indices.

At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, dropped 775.53 points or 1.58% at 48,404.78. The Nifty 50 index skid 236.10 points or 1.62% at 14,313.30.

Rising domestic coronavirus cases dented investors sentiment. Global cues were subdued as COVID-induced lockdowns in Europe and potential U.S. tax hikes hit investors' risk appetite.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 2.57% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 2.41%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 493 shares rose and 2,234 shares fell. A total of 154 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 2.41% to 23. The Nifty 25 March 2021 futures were trading at 14,318.50, at a premium of 5.20 points as compared with the spot at 14,313.30. The March 2021 F&O contracts will expire today, 25 March 2021.

The Nifty option chain for 25 March 2021 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 66.7 lakh contracts at the 15,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 57.5 lakh contracts was seen at 14,000 strike price.

Coronavirus Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,47,74,967 with 27,43,475 deaths. India reported 3,95,192 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,60,692 deaths while 1,12,31,650 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India recorded 53,476 new COVID-19 cases in a span of 24 hours, the highest single-day rise so far this year, taking the nationwide coronavirus tally to 1,17,87,534, the Union health ministry said on Thursday. Now, India has over 1.17 crore COVID-19 cases, the third-highest amount behind the United States and Brazil.

The government has expressed concern over the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra and Punjab. Maharashtra reported highest 28,699 cases in last 24 hours followed by Punjab with 2,254 cases. Addressing media in New Delhi yesterday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said top ten districts where maximum active cases are concentrated are Pune, Nagpur, Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Aurangabad, Nanded, Jalgaon, Akola and Bengaluru Urban.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Auto index lost 2.70% to 9,657.50. The index slipped 5.20% in two sessions.

Motherson Sumi Systems (down 6.18%), TVS Motor Company (down 3.79%), Ashok Leyland (down 3.61%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 3.55%) and Tata Motors (down 3.43%) were the top losers in Auto segment.

Stocks in Spotlight:

NLC India skid 2.68%. The company issued 10,000 commercial paper of face value of Rs 5 lakh each on 24 March 2021, aggregating to Rs 500 crore.

Vakrangee (VL) lost 0.39%. The firm has entered into a partnership agreement with TransUnion CIBIL (TUCIBIL) to drive financial inclusion by providing easy access to CIBIL score and report to consumers through Nextgen Vakrangee Kendra network. A CIBIL score is essentially an assessment of an individual's or company credit worthiness and financial health which is used as an indicator for providing loans and credit services. A good credit score can be used by them to bargain for a better interest rate.

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