Investors get poorer by Rs 7.62 lakh cr as coronavirus fears deepen

Investors' wealth eroded by Rs 7.62 lakh crore on Monday as markets witnessed yet another sharp fall, with the Sensex plunging 2,713.41 points as coronavirus scare continued to hit market sentiment.

The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies dropped by Rs 7,62,290.23 crore to Rs 1,21,63,952.59 crore at the close of trade.

The drop in investor wealth was led by extreme weak broader market sentiment, where the Sensex witnessed another sharp fall after staging a strong comeback on Friday. The key index plummeted 2,713.41 points or 7.96 per cent to close at 31,390.07.

"After a short breather on Friday, sell-off resumed in the Indian markets following weak global cues despite the US Federal Reserve's emergency stimulus," Ajit Mishra, vice-president (research), Religare Broking Ltd, said.

He added that the broader markets BSE Midcap and Smallcap also ended lower by 5.9 per cent and 5.7 per cent, respectively. "On the sector front, all the indices witnessed heavy selling pressure wherein metals, banks, realty and IT were the top losers."
Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services, said, "Easing monetary policy action from central banks across the globe highlights that the impact of coronavirus is worse than thought. Economic, trade and travel shutdown are impacting equities across the globe."