Business Standard

Sensex tanks 1,448 pts on coronavirus jitters; worst weekly fall in 10 yrs

All that happened in stock market today

Image SI Reporter New Delhi
Bear market, markets, bse, nse, sensex, nifty

Equity market witnessed one of the steepest falls in the recent years on Friday, as the fears of coronavirus turning into a pandemic triggered all-round sell-off at the bourses. Hopes that the epidemic that started in China would be over in a few months and economic activity would return to normal have been shattered, as new infections reported around the world now surpass those in China.

As a result, the S&P BSE Sensex nosedived 1,448 points or 3.64 per cent to end the session at 38,297. All 30 constituents ended in the red. Tech Mahindra (down around 9 per cent) took the biggest knock on the index. Other major contributors to the index's decline were were Reliance Industries (RIL), Infosys, HDFC, ICICI Bank, and TCS. On the NSE, the 50-share index Nifty plunged 432 points or 3.7 per cent to end at 11,202. Volatility index India VIX zoomed 29 per cent to 22.87 levels.

On a weekly basis, Sensex slipped around 7 per cent while Nifty declined 7.2 per cent. This is the worst weekly fall for the indices in a decade.

All sectoral indices on the NSE ended deep in the red. Nifty IT index dropped over 5 per cent to 15,274 levels while Nifty Metal index cracked over 7 per cent to 2,233 levels. In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index dropped over 3 per cent to 14,600 levels while S&P BSE SmallCap ended at 13,709, down 500 points or 3.52 per cent.

Analyst view

According to analysts, markets are increasingly getting worried about the rapid outbreak of coronavirus across geographies and the consequent economic fallout.

"The Coronavirus continues to drive market sentiment, with “risk off” triggered by the spread of the disease outside China and Asia. The obvious risk for Wall Street-correlated world stock markets is that the virus spreads more overtly into North America. Clearly the hope and indeed still the base case is that the virus, which appears to be an extreme form of viral flu, will burn itself when the weather changes as was indeed the case with Sars," said Christopher Wood, global head of equity strategy at Jefferies. READ MORE HERE

Further, incessant selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) spooked retail investors, traders said. According to provisional data available with stock exchanges, so far this week, FPIs have offloaded stocks worth Rs 9,389 crore on a net basis.

"Technically, with the Nifty moving down further and in a free fall, traders will need to watch if the Nifty can now hold above the next major supports at 11090; else the current downtrend is likely to continue. Any pullback rallies could find resistances at 11382-11536," said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities in an emailed note.

Global Markets

World share markets were headed for their worst week since the depths of the 2008 financial crisis as investors ditched risky assets on fears the coronavirus would become a pandemic and trigger a global recession. Stock futures showed European indexes set to track the rout in their Asian counterparts on Friday, which comes after another massive selloff on Wall Street overnight.

MSCI's regional index excluding Japan shed 2.7 per cent. Japan's Nikkei slumped 4.3 per cent on rising fears the Olympics planned in July-August may be called off due to the coronavirus.

In commodities, US crude futures fell 3.2 per cent to $45.59 per barrel, having lost 14.5% so far on the week, which would be the deepest fall in nearly nine years.

(With inputs from Reuters & PTI)
3:42 PM

SECTOR WATCH | Here's how sectoral indices on the NSE performed

3:41 PM

MARKET AT CLOSE | All 30 constituents of S&P BSE Sensex end in the red

3:36 PM

CLOSING BELL

The S&P BSE Sensex tanked 1,448 points or 3.64 per cent to settle at 38,297 levels while NSE's Nifty50 index ended at 11,202, down 432 points or 3.7 per cent.
3:21 PM

MARKET COMMENT :: Rajesh Cheruvu, CIO, Validus Wealth

In the long run, should COVID-19 pandemic prevail, stocks with safe haven characteristics would be the go-to avenues. IT Sector (preferably domestic focused as most have relatively high foreign exposure that is linked to current muted demand), Staples (except where there is no element of meat consumption), Utilities and high dividend yield stocks can be likely attractive candidates.
3:16 PM

COMMENT :: CARE Ratings on coronavirus impact

The impact on the Indian economy will depend on whether or not coronavirus spreads to other countries with which India has trade links, and whether it is temporary or more permanent in nature. India exported a total of $16.7 bn to China in FY19. Considering that total exports in FY20 remain at the same level as FY19 and based on out earlier stated assumption of 80% loss in Indian exports to China, the total export loss would be around $13.4 bn. Exports to China witnessed a CAGR growth of about 28% between FY17 and FY19.
3:16 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Nifty below 11,200

3:12 PM

Contribution to S&P BSE Sensex's fall today

3:11 PM

MARKET CHECK

3:10 PM

Heatmap: S&P BSE Sensex

3:03 PM

MARKET UPDATE :: Sensex down 1,500 pts

2:55 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Nifty down over 400 pts

2:54 PM

NEWS ALERT | Coronavirus is a black swan event; outcome is uncertain: Motilal Oswal Securities to CNBC-TV18

2:53 PM

BROKERAGE RADAR | Emkay Global on Automobiles

Wholesales are expected to be under pressure in CVs, 2Ws and PVs due to inventory correction by dealers before the BS6 transition. In comparison, marginal
growth is likely to be seen in tractors due to the low base from last year and improved customer sentiment. Our top Buys and OWs in sector EAP are Maruti Suzuki, Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors and Escorts. Our top Sell rated stock is TVS Motors and we are UW on it in our sector EAP.
2:52 PM

Top losers on BSE500 today

COMPANY LATEST PREV CLOSE LOSS(%)
FUTURE CONSUMER 12.35 15.40 -19.81
ALLAHABAD BANK 11.30 12.95 -12.74
POWER FIN.CORPN. 109.30 125.05 -12.59
GMR INFRA. 20.00 22.85 -12.47
DISH TV 8.33 9.47 -12.04
Click here for the full list
2:52 PM

BROKERAGE RADAR

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First Published: Feb 28 2020 | 7:43 AM IST