Market
Updated : 2020-03-30 07:43:19
With global markets continuing to suffer the brunt of coronavirus amidst global shutdown, Indian bourses will most likely mirror the losses and open lower on Monday. At 7:15 am, the SGX Nifty traded 35 points lower at 8,445, hinting at a weak start for the Sensex and Nifty50.
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1. Asia: Stocks in Asia fell in morning trade on Monday as investors continue to assess the economic impact of the global coronavirus pandemic that continues to spread rapidly. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 4.18 percent as shares of index heavyweight and conglomerate Softbank Group dropped 8.82% while the Topix index slipped 4.59 percent. Over in South Korea, the Kospi shed 3.06 percent. Meanwhile, shares in Australia edged higher, with the S&P/ASX 200 up 1.28 percent. Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.86 percent lower. (Image Source: Reuters)
2. US: US stock futures traded lower on Sunday night following sharp gains last week while the number of coronavirus cases in the US keeps rising at an alarming rate.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 187 points, pointing to an implied drop of about 260 points at the Monday open. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures also pointed to Monday opening declines. The moves came as crude prices fell sharply. (Image Source: AP)
3. Market At Close On Friday: Benchmark indices ended with little change on March 27 after RBI announced some measures including repo and reverse repo rate cut. At close, the Sensex was down 131.18 points or 0.44 percent at 29815.59, and the Nifty was up 18.80 points or 0.22 percent at 8660.25. About 1131 shares have advanced, 1138 shares declined, and 166 shares are unchanged. Foreign institutional investors bought Rs 356 crore in the cash market while the domestic institutional investors bought Rs 1,704 crore. (Image Source: Reuters)
4. Crude Oil: Oil prices plunged more than 5 percent on Friday and were on track for a fifth straight weekly loss as demand destruction caused by the coronavirus outweighed stimulus efforts by policymakers around the world. Brent crude was down $2.03, or 7.7 percent, at $24.31 a barrel while US crude was down $1.29, or 5.7 percent, at $21.31. (Image Source: AP)
5. Rupee Close: The Indian rupee appreciated by 81 paise to 74.35 against the US dollar in intra-day trade on Friday, after the Reserve Bank announced various measures including a 75 basis point cut in repo rate to support the economy amid the coronavirus-induced crisis. Forex traders welcomed the RBI initiatives and said the measures showed that the central bank is willing to take steps to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. (Image: Reuters)
6. RBI Cuts Repo Rate: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced a 75 basis points cut in the repo rate, in order to provide relief from the damage caused by the deadly coronavirus that has hit the economy severely by affecting businesses and individuals. With the 75 basis points cut, the repo rate currently stands at 4.4 percent. The reverse repo rate has been cut by 90 basis points “so that banks are incentivised to lend, disincentivised to hoard money”. The central bank has maintained its policy stance at “accommodative” . The RBI governor’s announcement comes a day after finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a Rs 1.7 lakh crore relief package amid the crisis. (Image Source: Reuters)
6. RBI Allows Banks To Defer Interest: In a major move by the central bank, it decided to defer interest payment on working capital loans by three months for lending institutions.
“In respect of working capital facilities sanctioned in the form of cash credit/overdraft, lending institutions are being permitted to allow a deferment of three months on payment of interest in respect of all such facilities outstanding as on March 1, 2020,” said the central bank. The accumulated interest for the period will be paid after the expiry of the deferment period. (Image Source: Reuters)
8. Amalgamation Of 10 PSBs: The RBI on Saturday said it has approved the amalgamation of Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank of India into Punjab National Bank, Syndicate Bank into Canara Bank, Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank into Union Bank of India and Allahabad Bank into Indian Bank. The scheme will come into force with effect from April 1, 2020. (Image Source: Reuters)
9. SC Gives Marginal Relief To Autos: The Supreme Court (SC) has allowed the sale of only 10 of the 700,000 unsold BS4 vehicles (7.27 lakh vehicles) beyond the March 31 deadline. The government had set a deadline of March 31 for all automakers to switch from BS4 to BS6 emission norms. The notification had prescribed that sale and registration of BS4 vehicles will not be allowed beyond the March 31 deadline. Only vehicles, which will have their chassis and engine number details on the affidavit FADA sent to the court, will be allowed to be registered. (Image Source: Reuters)
10. PM Announces New Fund For Donation: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced the creation of an assistance and emergency situation relief fund where people can contribute and help in the government’s fight against coronavirus. The Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund will go a long way in creating a healthier India, he said on Twitter.” People from all walks of life expressed their desire to donate to India’s war against COVID-19,” he said, adding the fund has been constituted respecting that spirit. (Image Source: Reuters)
