Indian stock markets nosedived on Monday in the opening session as Sensex tanked almost 2,000 points or around 5 per cent at 32582.95 and Nifty went on a downward spiral by 440 points or 4.43 per cent at 9514.60, even as US Federal Reserve has cut its benchmark interest rate to almost zero and said it would buy USD700 billion in bonds, in a drastic measure to stem any major disruption to the economy.
According to trade analysts, the domestic markets continue to suffer as the Coronavirus pandemic is effecting the global economy deeply.
The major gainers on the trading indices was YES Bank, while HDFC, ICICI Bank, SBI, Sun Pharma, JSPL, Max Financial and DLF were the biggest losers on the stock exchange.
The Indian rupee was trading at 74.11 against US dollar, lower than Friday’s close of 73.91.
Earlier, on Friday market closed to a gain of around 4 per cent each in S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 in a dramatic recovery following the bloodbath , as trading was put to halt for 45 minutes in some times after opening. The BSE Sensex crashed 3,000 points, while the NSE Nifty nosedived to a three years low of 8,800 for the first time since February 2017. Following an intra-day plunge of more than 10 per cent, the benchmark indices suffered their worst week since 2009.
The domestic stock market entered the bear zone on Thursday as the indices fell over 22 per cent from their all-time highs.
Meanwhile, the global markets continued to be under threat of the spread of Coronavirus, having a major disruptive impact on the economy, particularly in the global supply chain.The epidemic has raised fears of a global recession with uncertainties over the proportions of the economic fallout, as countries around the world grapple with how to contain the outbreak.
The COVID-19 pandemic has sickened more than 156,000 people worldwide and left more than 5,800 dead.
Meanwhile, the global equity markets too got a beating with MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.5 per cent.
Japan’s Nikkei was up 0.1 per cent following a nosedive of over 6 per cent on Friday to the lowest since late 2016 while South Korea’s KOSPI too was trading on a weaker note.
In Singapore the US stock tanked 4.8 per cent hitting their down limit.
Australia’s stock index recovered some loses after falling 7 per cent in the first quarter-hour of trade.
The US Central Bank, the Federal Reserve on Sunday announced slashing the key rate and buying USD700 billion in Treasury and mortgage-backed securities to help the economy withstand the viral outbreak. “The coronavirus outbreak has harmed communities and disrupted economic activity in many countries, including the United States,” the Fed said in a statement.
Global financial conditions have also been significantly affected, it said, and noted that available economic data showed the US economy came into this challenging period on a strong footing.
The Federal Reserve said that it would continue to monitor the implications of incoming information for the economic outlook, including that of public health, as well as global developments and muted inflation pressures, and will use its tools and act appropriately to support the economy.
In addition, the Open Market Desk has recently expanded its overnight and term repurchase agreement operations. The committee will continue to closely monitor market conditions and is prepared to adjust its plans as appropriate, the Fed said.
(With agency inputs)