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Stock Market LIVE Updates: Market falls from day’s high as coronavirus cases register rise in country, Nifty holds 8,500-mark – Firstpost

By Kalpana Warrier on March 31, 2020




































































































Stock Market LIVE Updates: The market continued its opening rally in the afternoon trade and Sensex 1007.59 points or 3.54 percent 29,447.91 and Nifty was up 308.45 points or 3.72 percent at 8,589.55 at around 12.45 pm.

In the Sensex pack, ONGC and HDFC zoomed over 6 percent.

The market continued to rally in the afternoon trade and Sensex soared 883.67 points or 3.11 percent to 29,323.99 and Nifty was up 265.60 points or 3.21 percent at 8,546.70 at around 12.05 pm.

India may slash or even cancel its planned borrowings from the market for April amid a nationwide lockdown prompted by the coronavirus outbreak, two finance ministry sources told Reuters.

The travel curbs have disrupted routine bond market trading and volumes and prompted primary dealers, who underwrite the bond issuances, to seek finance ministry intervention.

“We are looking at various options. Market borrowing is challenging in the current environment,” a senior finance ministry official said.

Meanwhile, the Sensex was trading 678.84 points or 2.39 percent higher at 29,119.16 while Nifty was up 206.50 points or 2.49 percent at 8,487.60 at around 11.20 am.

The market continued its opening rally as Sensex soared 715.64 points or 2.52 percent to 29,155.96 while the broader Nifty was up 218 2.63 percent at 8,499.10 at around 10.30 am.

Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya, on Tuesday asked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to consider his repeated “offer to repay 100 per cent” of the amount borrowed by now defunct Kingfisher Airlines, in this time of coronavirus pandemic.

Mallya, who is wanted in India on alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to an estimated Rs 9,000 crore, also said all his companies have effectively ceased operations and manufacturing following the lockdown in India.

“I have made repeated offers to pay 100 per cent of the amount borrowed by KFA to the Banks. Neither are Banks willing to take money and neither is the ED willing to release their attachments which they did at the behest of the Banks. I wish the FM would listen in this time of crisis,” Mallya said in a series of tweets.

The Sensex zoomed 650.73 points or 2.29 percent to 29,091.05 while the broader Nifty was up 203.15 points or 2.45 percent to 8,484.25 at around 10.20 am.

The Sensex rebounded from the early losses and was trading 451.68 points or 1.59 percent higher at 28,892 while the broader Nifty was up 151.35 points or 1.83 percent at 8,432.45 at around 9.40 am.

Axis Bank and Tata Steel were the top gainers in the Sensex pack.

Markets open on positive note; Sensex up 800 points, Nifty above 8,500-level

Sydney: Asian share markets managed a tentative rally on Tuesday after European and U.S. equities stabilised, though buying for month and quarter-end book balancing likely flattered the gains.

There were also hopes a survey of Chinese manufacturing due later would show a sizable improvement for March as factories began to re-open.

Forecasts are that the China’s official purchasing manufacturers’ index (PMI) will bounce to 45.0, from a record-low 35.7 in February.

China Data Watch | March official manufacturing PMI at 52 Vs 35.7 & official services PMI at 52.3 Vs 29.6 (MoM) pic.twitter.com/1Eoo5iO80L

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 31, 2020

Analysts cautioned the result could even be higher given that the index measures the net balance of firms reporting an expansion or contraction in activity.

If a company merely resumed working after a forced stoppage, it would read as an expansion without saying much about the overall level of activity.

Investors look at computer screens showing stock information at a brokerage house in Shanghai, China. File Photo. Reuters

In any case, calmer markets globally helped MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rise 0.7 percent. Japan’s Nikkei edged up 0.2 percent and South Korea 1.4 percent.

E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 ESc1 added another 0.3 percent, supported by talk of book-keeping demand.

“It’s month-end rebalancing, whereby balanced funds now underweight equities versus fixed income given this month’s valuation destruction, need to buy stocks to get back into balance,” analysts at NAB said.

Healthcare had led Wall Street higher, with the Dow ending Monday up 3.19 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 3.35 percent and the Nasdaq 3.62 percent.

News on the coronavirus remained grim but radical stimulus steps by governments and central banks have at least provided some comfort to economies.

Infections in hard-hit Italy slowed a little, but the government still extended its lockdown to mid-April. California reported a steep rise in people being hospitalised, while Washington state told people to stay at home.

Trade ministers from the Group of 20 major economies agreed on Monday to keep their markets open and ensure the flow of vital medical supplies.

Oil prices overwhelmed

Portfolio management also played a part in the forex market where many fund managers found themselves over-hedged on their US equity holdings given the sharp fall in values seen this month, leading them to buy back dollars.

That saw the euro ease back to $1.1030, from a top of $1.143 on Monday, while the dollar index bounced to 99.207, from a trough of 98.330.

The Japanese yen continued to attract safe-haven demand of its own, which left the dollar at 108.08 and off last week’s peak at 111.71.

Oil prices plunged to the lowest in almost 18 years on Monday as lockdowns for the virus squeezed demand even as Saudi Arabia and Russia vied to pump more product.

In a new twist, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed during a phone call on Monday to have their top energy officials meet to discuss slumping prices.

“However, the reality is that the level damage to demand is likely to overwhelm any production cut agreement between major producers,” wrote analysts at ANZ in a note.

“The lockdown of cities around the world and the shutdown of the aviation industry will cause a fall in demand the industry has never seen before.”

Prices did at least try and steady early Tuesday, with US crude CLc1 up 56 cents to $20.64. Brent crude LCOc1 futures gained 25 cents to $23.01 a barrel.

In the gold market all the talk has been of a rush of demand for the physical product amid shortages in coins and small bars. Flows into gold-backed ETFs have ballooned by $13 billion so far this year, the most since 2004.

The metal was holding at $1,616 an ounce, well up from a low of $1,450 touched early in the month.

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Updated Date: Mar 31, 2020 13:51:47 IST

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Kalpana Warrier
Kalpana Warrier

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