Barometers trade in range; metal shares decline

Key equity indices continued trading in a narrow range with steep losses in mid-afternoon trade. Metal shares declined for second day. The Nifty managed to hold above its 50-day daily exponential moving average placed at 14622.45.

At 14:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 612.73 points or 1.22% to 49,438.71. The Nifty 50 index skid 172.80 points or 1.17% to 14,641.95.

The broader market outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.14%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.87%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 956 shares rose and 1912 shares fell. A total of 170 shares were unchanged.

Domestic shares mirrored the weakness in other global stock markets as rising COVID-19 cases drove demand for safe assets, resulting into flight of capital into treasuries and the dollar. Germany, France and Italy have widened virus-related curbs. The head of the World Health Organization called recent increases in deaths and cases "truly worrying trends." Consequently, the crude oil was struggling to hold above the $60 mark after it dropped nearly 6% in the previous session as renewed possibility of lockdowns clouded hopes of recovery in consumption.

Numbers to Track:

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2021 settlement rose $1.07 to $61.86 a barrel. The contract slumped 5.93% or $3.83 to settle at $60.79 a barrel in the previous session.

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.118% as compared to its previous close of 6.144%.

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee fell to 72.6325, compared with its previous closing of 72.43.

MCX Gold futures for 5 April 2021 settlement rose 0.28% to Rs 44,770.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, rose 0.23% to 92.55.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Metal index fell 2.31% to 3,753.15. The index has lost 2.96% in two sessions.

APL Apollo Tubes (down 3.79%), Hindalco Industries (down 3.5%), Tata Steel (down 3.35%), Hindustan Copper (down 3.2%), National Aluminum Company (down 2.46%), NMDC (down 2.39%) and SAIL (down 2.07%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 1.98%), Mishra Dhatu Nigam (down 1.82%), Coal India (down 1.7%), Welspun Corp (down 1.26%), Hindustan Zinc (down 0.92%), MOIL (down 0.63%), Ratnamani Metals Tubes (down 0.6%) and JSW Steel (down 0.54%) declined.

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