Stocks slump as coronavirus scare casts shadow on global economy

Market gauges Sensex and Nifty tumbled further on Tuesday as investors continued to engage in sell-offs for a second day in a row fearing economic fallout of deadly coronavirus.

Besides, other domestic factors like weak quarterly earnings by corporates, reports suggesting shortfall in tax collections and a general caution ahead of Union Budget weighed on investor sentiments.

At the closing bell, the 30-share BSE Sensex was down 188.26 points, or 0.46 per cent, at 40,966.86 -- its weakest level in over six weeks. During the day, the index swung over 463 points.

Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty settled the day 63.20 points, or 0.52 per cent, down at 12,055.80.

In the Sensex pack, Bharti Airtel was the biggest loser, dropping 4.55 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, Reliance Industries, Maruti, ITC, Nestle India and ICICI Bank.

On the other hand, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, Sun Pharma and HDFC Bank advanced up to 1.53 per cent.

Sectorally, BSE telecom was the biggest loser, cracking 4.11 per cent, followed by metal, energy, power, auto and FMCG indices.

While BSE oil and gas, IT and finance indices ended higher.

In the broader market, BSE midcap and smallcap indices fell up to 0.52 per cent.

The Indian market was caught in an intense volatility for a second straight day, guided by global sell-offs amid mounting concerns over the impact of China's coronavirus on the world economy, analysts said.

The death toll from a coronavirus outbreak in China has soared to 106, while nearly 1,300 new cases have been confirmed. Confirmed virus cases have also been reported from about a dozen countries.

In signs of fear of the deadly virus in the global market, South Korea's Kospi plunged over 3 per cent and Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.55 per cent. Stock exchanges in Europe too opened on a tepid note.

"Auto sector has given a setback to the market due to low demand, fall in realisations and higher competition. India is taking a careful approach since Q3 has not given a positive sign of revival in corporate earnings as expected. Global market is negative on concerns that Novel Coronavirus issue may slowdown the world economy," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.

Brent crude oil futures dropped 0.77 per cent to USD 58.13 per barrel.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee appreciated by 9 paise to 71.34 per US dollar.

Sources with direct knowledge of the development said income and corporate tax collections are likely to miss FY2020 targets by as much as Rs 1.5 lakh crore while indirect taxes may fall short by about Rs 50,000 crore on drop in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in a sluggish economy.