Stock Market Today LIVE Updates: Indices turn green; Sensex gains 229 points from earlier lows; Nifty up – Firstpost

14:13 (IST)

Markets make sharp recovery; Sensex, Nifty up

Market sees a sharp recovery from lows, #Sensex, #Nifty & Nifty Bank gain 8-11% from lows to turn positive pic.twitter.com/qH7oo6cChj
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

14:11 (IST)

Sensex erased morning losses and was trading in green in the afternoon session

Sensex was trading 252.93 points or 0.88 higher at 29,122.44 at around 2 PM.

Nifty was trading 50.35 points or 0.59 percent at 8,519.15.

14:02 (IST)

Midcap Index up

#CNBCTV18Market | Sensex sees a gain of more than 2,000 points form lows pic.twitter.com/kPP1Gk1gvc
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

13:59 (IST)

Sensex makes sharp recovery

#CNBCTV18Market | Sensex sees a gain of more than 2,000 points form lows pic.twitter.com/kPP1Gk1gvc
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

13:57 (IST)

Nifty recovers sharply

#CNBCTV18Market | Sharp uptick in market, #Nifty gains 7% from lows pic.twitter.com/q6km8ScsEp
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

13:54 (IST)

FHRAI makes representation to PMO for stimulus package

The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting government intervention and cushion the blow which the hospitality sector is facing on account of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In a representation submitted to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Federation has outlined the challenges posed by the crises, its impact to the industry and the support hoped from the Government.

The submission includes pleading for complete GST holiday for 6 months from both the State and Central government, deferment for fiscal statutory compliance deadlines such as payment of direct and indirect taxes, deferment for repayment of loans, bank EMIs, etc. for a period of 6 months, reduction of bank interest rate by almost 200 basis points with immediate full transmission for working capital, and relief in electricity bills in the form of waiver or subsidy of FAC charges, and electricity duty working capital.

13:41 (IST)

Ashok Leyland hits 52-week low

The share price of Ashok Leyland touched 52-week low of Rs 51.50. It fell 20 percent intraday on 19 March as the company approved the acquisition of upto 19 percent additional equity shares in Hinduja Leyland Finance Limited from the existing shareholders in tranches.

13:31 (IST)

Covid-19 has adversely impacted way of working

A survey has revealed that majority of professionals believe the outbreak has adversely impacted their way of working. Around 63 percent of respondents affirmed that the novel coronavirus or Covid-19 pandemic has influenced their way of working and about 33 percent said they have shelved their business travel plans due to this, a TimesJobs survey titled ‘Coronavirus and its impact on jobs’ has revealed.

The survey was done among 1,256 working professionals from different industry verticals across the country. About 27 per cent of respondents claimed that the IT sector will be worst hit by the spread of the virus, followed by the import and export sector (stated 23 per cent of respondents). While, 13 percent of respondents said the healthcare sector and the aviation sector will be most impacted by the Coronavirus outbreak, it added.

13:22 (IST)

Nifty Bank turns positive

#MarketRecovers | Nifty Bank turns positive, gains over 10% from lows pic.twitter.com/NygiPnqo9f
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

13:18 (IST)

CREDAI says property sales, construction affected; seeks bailout package

Realtors’ apex body CREDAI has said the construction work has come to a standstill while sales have been hit following the outbreak of coronavirus, and demanded the government provide a three-month moratorium on debt repayment, additional liquidity and more time to complete ongoing real estate projects.

The industry body has written a letter to Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri seeking a bailout package.

Giving details about the impact of coronavirus scare on Indian real estate, CREDAI said sales velocity and the receivables have been hit drastically leading to default/delay in fulfilling financial commitments (interest & principal). Property buyers are skipping instalments payable on their purchases of real estate, it said, adding that rental income of retail properties has been affected due to closure of malls and multiplexes.

“The construction work has come to a standstill and delays in procurement/delivery of construction material (imported and indigenous) as well as the labour disruptions are bound to cause delay in completion of ongoing projects,” CREDAI said.

13:13 (IST)

RBI should cut rates: CII President

Supply chains have been disrupted for sometime; worried about SMEs. RBI should cut rates and cash reserve ratio. Requesting industry to pay SMEs at the earliest, CII President tells CNBC-TV18.

13:02 (IST)

Sensex, Nifty make recovery

#CNBCTV18Market | Sensex & Nifty gain over 5% each from lows pic.twitter.com/AXNx7lLPH8
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

12:47 (IST)

25 stocks in BSE100 Index trade positive during intra trade

In the BSE100 index, around 25 stocks were positive in intraday deals, whereas the remaining 75 gave negative returns up to 26 percent. https://t.co/oOGGR4uzW2
— CNBC-TV18 News (@CNBCTV18News) March 19, 2020

12:42 (IST)

Mutual funds add 3 lakh investor accounts in February

The mutual fund industry has added over 3 lakh investor accounts in February, taking the total folio tally to 8.88 crore, which suggests investors’ understanding about market risks associated with such schemes. However, the pace of growth in folio numbers dropped in February compared to the preceding two months.

In January, the industry added 14 lakh folios and in December, the number was over 6 lakh. Mutual fund houses added just 2.6 lakh investor accounts in November.

Folios are numbers designated to individual investor accounts. An investor can have multiple folios.

12:34 (IST)

Rupee falls below 75 level against US dollar

The Indian rupee weakened further and fell below 75 level against the US dollar on Thursday amid a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the country and weak domestic equities.

Forex traders said market participants are concerned that rise in coronavirus cases, which has touched 169 in the country according to the Health Ministry, could weigh on the economy.

The rupee which opened on a weak note at 74.96 at the interbank forex market, lost further ground and touched a low of 75.12 against the US dollar, registering a decline of over 86 paise over its last close. The local unit had settled at 74.26 against the US dollar on Wednesday.

12:31 (IST)

COVID-19 likely to impact fiscal numbers, says economist

The COVID-19 is likely to impact India’s fiscal numbers in FY20 though it might be too early to say, possibly in FY21, said . Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser, SBIHowever, it will be completely foolhardy to stick to any mandated fiscal rules in times of current crisis that is now threatening to rip apart the entire global financial ecosystem, he said.

Globally, state loans, income subsidies and tax deferrals are the most common fiscal packages being offered. In India, the number of active cases has risen to 151 with 14 fresh cases in a single day. “When we analyze the occurrence of active cases in the seven most affected countries apart from China, in the second week, the number of cases jumps almost 7 times compared to the first week.

“In some countries like Iran and Spain even the active cases rose to 13 times in the second week compared to the first week. Though India has already taken plethora of steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19, all eyes are now on the rise in active cases in the current week and next as this determines the extent of our preparedness.

12:21 (IST)

Silver futures rise by Rs 503 to Rs 34,410 per kg

Silver prices on Thursday jumped Rs 503 to Rs 34,410 per kg in futures trade as participants widened their bets amid a firm trend in precious metal overseas. On the Multi Commodity Exchange, silver contracts for May delivery gained Rs 503, or 1.48 percent, to Rs 34,410 per kg in 6,445 lots.

Similarly, the white metal for delivery in July was trading higher by Rs 442, or 1.28 percent, at Rs 34,864 per kg in 400 lots.

Traders said fresh bets by participants in line with a firm trend in global markets mainly led to a rise in silver futures. In the international market, silver was quoting 2.91 percent higher at USD 12.12 an ounce in New York.

12:17 (IST)

Oil rally loses steam as ECB move fails to calm markets

Oil prices pulled back from a massive early rally Thursday as a plan by the European Central Bank to buy huge amounts of bonds failed to calm coronavirus-ravaged markets.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate had surged more than 17 percent at the open in Asian trade, recouping enormous losses Wednesday when prices hit 18-year lows. But it lost a large chunk of those gains in the afternoon and was trading up almost 12 percent at USD 22 a barrel.

International benchmark Brent crude initially jumped 8.5 percent but lost ground later, and was up 4.6 percent at $26 a barrel in late Asian business.

12:06 (IST)

Economic fundamentals good; do not hoard, says Thailand PM to people

Taiwan’s economic fundamentals remain good and people should not hoard as the government can ensure stable supplies during the ongoing coronavirus crisis, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Thursday.

The government does not rule out spending more to stimulate the economy, and will help the hard-hit airline industry to access T$50 billion ($1.6 billion) in financing, she told a news conference at the presidential office.

12:03 (IST)

Reliance Industries shares continue to fall; further tank 8%

Shares of Reliance Industries continued to trade with losses for the fourth consecutive trading session on Thursday, falling further by nearly 8 percent. RIL shares tanked 8 percent to Rs 891 — its 52-week low — on the BSE. At the NSE, it declined 7.87 percent to Rs 892.20 — its one-year low.

A heavy sell-off in the equity market since past few days, has pulled down RIL’s market valuation sharply. This is the fourth consecutive session of fall for RIL shares which have dropped 19.5 percent till Thursday.

11:58 (IST)

About 25 mn jobs could be lost worldwide due to coronavirus: UN

Nearly 25 million jobs could be lost worldwide due to the coronavirus pandemic, but an internationally coordinated policy response can help lower the impact on global unemployment, according to a UN agency.

In its preliminary assessment report titled “COVID-19 and world of work: Impacts and responses”, the International Labour Organization (ILO) calls for urgent, large-scale and coordinated measures across three pillars – protecting workers in the workplace, stimulating the economy and employment, and supporting jobs and incomes.

The ILO said these measures include extending social protection, supporting employment retention (i.e short-time work, paid leave, other subsidies), and financial and tax relief, including for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

It also proposes fiscal and monetary policy measures, and lending and financial support for specific economic sectors.

11:47 (IST)

DoT issues fresh letter to telcos

Telecom sources tell CNBC-TV18 that the @DoT_India has issued a fresh letter to telcos after the Supreme Court slammed both telcos & the telecom regulator w.r.t the issue of self-assessment of #AGR dues. Here’s more pic.twitter.com/YobyMBxoxa
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

11:42 (IST)

Crude traders offer deep discounts

Crude oil traders from West Africa to the US Gulf Coast are offering cargoes at deep discounts, desperately trying to attract buyers as global supplies swell and demand plunges.

Oil prices have plummeted to 18-year lows as the global spread of the coronavirus has throttled back air and road travel at the same time as major producers are hiking production after Russia refused to back deeper output cuts at a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies.

The sudden collapse in demand has resulted in a glut of unsold, high quality crude in Nigeria and sent prices at the U.S. Gulf Coast to a discount to benchmark futures, traders said, as Middle East producers flood the market with supplies.

11:34 (IST)

Nifty breaching 8000 marks

Vikas Jain, Senior Research Analyst, Reliance Securities said, “Nifty should find support near 7700 levels as it is 38.2 percent correction from the peak of 12431.

“One can expect some bounce from these levels and sectors like private banks, consumer and pharma can be looked for up move”.

11:30 (IST)

HDFC Bank makes 8% recovery

#CNBCTV18Market | HDFC, the top weighted Nifty stock, sees a recovery of 8% from lows pic.twitter.com/cWHCwVj7Ej
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

11:23 (IST)

Indices make sharp recovery

#CNBCTV18Market | Sharp recovery in market, Nifty reclaims 8,200 pic.twitter.com/jjBJin1MAx
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

11:15 (IST)

Ind-Ra revises rating watch on Yes Bank to ‘evolving’

India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has revised rating watch on the bank’s long-term issuer rating of ‘IND BB-‘ to rating watch evolving (RWE) from rating watch negative (RWN). The RWE indicates the possibility of the ratings being either upgraded, downgraded or affirmed.

“Ind-Ra has revised the rating watch on Yes Bank Ltd’s long-term issuer rating of ‘IND BB-‘ to RWE from RWN,” Yes Bank said in a filing to the BSE.

The revision of the rating watch follows the systemic support Yes Bank has received recently, in terms of both equity and liquidity, from the new set of investors and the regulator for its reconstruction.

11:02 (IST)

Yes Bank halts 4-session rally; shares tumble over 29%

Shares of Yes Bank on Thursday halted its four-session rally and plunged over 29 percent after the company said its single largest promoter Madhu Kapur has pledged an additional 25 lakh share of her family’s shareholding in the bank.

The scrip plummeted 25.74 percent to Rs 45.15 at the BSE. On the NSE, it cracked 29.19 percent to Rs 42.80.

In the last four trading days, the company’s scrip had risen a whopping 142 percent after Moody’s upgraded the company’s ratings and on announcement of a restructuring plan.

11:00 (IST)

Mild recovery in Sensex, Nifty

Sensex recovered and was trading 1566.84 points or 5.43 percent at 27,302.67.

Nifty Small Cap Index is at 6-year low.

NSE is above 8,000 mark and is trading 437.50 points or 5.17 percent at 8,031.30

10:57 (IST)

IndusInd Bank recovers

##CNBCTV18Market | IndusInd Bank recovers 14% from lows to turn positive briefly pic.twitter.com/azrsVX60vg
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

10:53 (IST)

Nifty below 8,000 ‘very bad’ for FY21

Vinay Pandit, Head – Institutional Equities, IndiaNivesh said: Nifty below 8,000 is virtually indicating a very bad FY21. While most investors and analysts were writing off Q4FY20, the current correction seems to be writing off FY21.

“Most sectors will have to take the brunt of the global slowdown and impact due to coronavirus. Crude correcting sharply to sub $25 is going to impact refiners and crude derivative user industries due to inventory losses for most players”

10:49 (IST)

‘Rate cuts are need of the hour’

S Naren, executive director and chief investment officer, ICICI Prudential AMC, in an interview to CNBC-TV18 said: Huge rate cuts are required. India has enough foreign reserves to make use of right now. Entire macro environment is extremely favourable for India.

Quantum of open market operations has to be in sync with huge amount of FII selling. India is the strongest emerging market in the world financially. Definitely require open market operations if FIIs are selling in equity and debt market.

Open market operation announcements are too small to mitigate FII selling risk. Investors must double up on investments at current valuations, said

10:45 (IST)

‘Panic is overriding emotion’

“Nothing much has changed. Panic is the overriding emotion right now,” said Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services in Kochi.

The virus, which originated in China, has spread quickly around the globe, killing more than 8,000 people and battering economic activity, which has raised fears of a global recession.

Follow LIVE Updates on coronavirus here

10:38 (IST)

Asia stocks dive, dollar soars as ECB bazooka fails to ease fears

Asian equities took another beating Thursday while the dollar surged as a European Central Bank plan to spend more than USD 800 billion to buy bonds failed to instil optimism in traders that the world is heading for a virus-fuelled economic catastrophe.

In what one analyst said could be a “game changer” for the coronavirus-wracked eurozone, the ECB’s so-called Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme aims to give financial markets some much-needed liquidity as investors pull the plug on markets. It said the 750-billion-euro (USD 820-billion) programme was temporary and will be halted when the coronavirus crisis is judged to be over “but in any case not before the end of the year”.

After announcing the move, ECB boss Christine Lagarde tweeted that “extraordinary times require extraordinary action. There are no limits to our commitment to the euro.” Those comments echoed the words of her predecessor Mario Draghi, whose pledge to do “whatever it takes” to preserve the eurozone was seen as a turning point in the region’s sovereign debt crisis.

10:35 (IST)

Rupee opens markedly lower

#Rupee hits record low against the US Dollar, opens at 74.95 pic.twitter.com/FU2KNizhGc
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

10:34 (IST)

Rupee hits fresh low

The rupee hit a fresh record low of 75.0100 against the dollar, as a flight into cash and worries about tightening liquidity boosted demand for the world’s reserve currency.

10:31 (IST)

‘Haven’t seen such a stock market before’

Sunil Singhania, Founder, Abbakkus Asset Management to CNBC-TV18: I haven’t seen such a market in my career and finding it difficult to invest until the stability returns.

“We can’t call this as a bottom, but the valuations are compelling, however removing capital gains tax will improve sentiment,” he said.

10:29 (IST)

Japan may hand out cash to households in stimulus package to battle virus fallout

Japan will look into offering cash payouts to households as part of a stimulus package that could be worth more than $276 billion to combat the widening fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, joining efforts across the world to roll out huge fiscal support to fend of recession risks.

Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said the stimulus package, likely to be compiled by the government in April, will be bold enough to fend off a crisis he described as potentially more serious than when the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 jolted financial markets.

10:28 (IST)

‘Looks like a repeat of 2008’

This looks like repeat of 2008, no point in trying to find a bottom right now, said Samir Arora in an interview to CNBC-TV18.

“There is no approach to the market. Investors should sit on the sidelines for now. India is shooting itself in the foot with respect to lot of industries. Would not look at indulging in any bargain hunting. Shouldn’t be obsessed with the desire to catch the bottom. India’s system takes too long to react. May buy in the future, not buying anything today. Economic recovery will take longer than stock market recovery,” he said.

10:24 (IST)

Metals hit new lows

LME three months copper plunged below the $5000 mark, Aluminum and nickel also hit fresh lows. Precious metals were down across the board and Oil remained on the defensive as well.

10:22 (IST)

Dollar continues to rule strong

US dollar continues to power higher as things remain very unsettled. Investors deal with an enemy that they cannot quantify or discount.

The easiest choice is to ride out the storm by seeking out safe havens, although in such times we have to admit that nothing feels all that safe, said YES Securities.

10:21 (IST)

US stocks react on concerns of economic fallout

US indices closed lower as concerns about economic fallout continues to haunt Wall Street, said YES Securities.

ECB announced a new Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme that will deploy €750 billion to purchase securities to help support European economy. Failure to sustain rallies shows bearish bias in Indian indices.

10:18 (IST)

Nifty registers minor recovery

#CNBCTV18Market | Minor recovery in market, #Nifty recovers nearly 200 points from lows to trade above 8,000 pic.twitter.com/JJPe6tWgZU
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

10:17 (IST)

DBS says Singapore recession inevitable in 2020 due to coronavirus

Singapore’s economy will contract by 0.5 percent in 2020, the city-state’s biggest bank DBS said on Thursday, adding a recession was inevitable due to an expected hit from the coronavirus outbreak.

DBS’s prior estimate was for the economy to grow 0.9 percent.

10:12 (IST)

HCL traded at 16-month low

#MarketSlump | HCL Tech at over 3-year low pic.twitter.com/oxXOU09umN
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

10:02 (IST)

Indices at record 3-year lows

#MarketSlump | #Sensex & #Nifty hit fresh 3-year lows, Midcap Index at a 4-year low. #Rupee approaches 75/$, trades at record low pic.twitter.com/QxwnYcDs3q
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 19, 2020

09:54 (IST)

Wall Street slumps again as fears continue to spiral

US stocks deepened their selloff on Wednesday and the Dow erased virtually the last of its gains since President Donald Trump’s 2017 inauguration, as the widening repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic threatened to cripple economic activity.

The benchmark S&P 500 index ended down 5.2 percent, though it pared losses late in the day as the US Senate passed legislation to provide billions of dollars to limit the damage from the outbreak through free coronavirus testing, paid sick leave and expanded safety-net spending.

09:51 (IST)

Fed moves to ensure liquidity in money market mutual funds

The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday night rolled out its third emergency credit program in two days, announcing it would make loans to banks that offer as collateral assets purchased from money market mutual funds.

The new facility through the Boston Federal Reserve bank will offer “support for the flow of credit to households and businesses” by ensuring the $3.8 trillion money market mutual fund industry can sell its holdings of US Treasury bonds and other high-quality assets at full value if investors ask to withdraw their cash.

09:45 (IST)

Oil rockets nearly 20 percent as investors hail coronavirus stimulus spending

Oil prices surged as much as nearly 20% on Thursday, bouncing back from days of heavy losses in a relief rally that may yet be short-lived, analysts warned, but which was stoked by economic stimulus efforts to ward off a global coronavirus recession.

Brent crude LCOc1 was up $2.10, or 8 percent, at $26.98 a barrel by 0028 GMT after tumbling 13 percent on Wednesday in a third day of relentless selling. US oil CLc1 gained $3.44, or 17 percent, to $23.81 a barrel after slumping nearly 25 percent in the previous session.

09:43 (IST)

Dollar surges, stocks fall as ECB fails to stop panic

The dollar surged, bonds plunged and global markets struggled to find their footing on Thursday as the European Central Bank’s latest promise of stimulus provided only brief solace while the world struggles to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

US stock futures EScv1 fell 2 percent. The Australian dollar was crushed, falling 3.3 percent to a more than 17-year low, and Asian markets gave up initial gains made after the ECB had announced a bond-buying program.

Stock Market Today LIVE Updates: At 2.02 PM, indices made a sharp recovery erasing all the intraday losses. Sensex up over 2,000 points from the lows. Sensex was 29,098.59, up 229.08 points or 0.79 percent. The Nifty was up 7.30 points or 0.09 percent at 8476.10. About 566 shares have advanced, 1640 shares declined, and 109 shares are unchanged.

Indices make a sharp recovery at 11.15 AM. Sensex was trading 516.72 points or 1.79 percent down at 28,352.79 while the Nifty was above 8,300 level

Nifty was trading 119.80 points or 1.41 percent down at 8,349.00.

At 10.o5 AM, the Sensex and Nifty was at 3-year low. Rupee too was at record low. Sensex is down 1798.84 points or 6.23 percent at 27,070.67 and the Nifty 523.15 points or 6.18 percent at 7,945.65.

Earlier, the Nifty breached 8,000 for the first time since December 27, 2016.

In a move likely to add to the anxiety, Intercontinental Exchange Inc, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, said after the bell that the NYSE will temporarily close its trading floors and move fully to electronic trading beginning Monday.

The NYSE said a floor trader and an NYSE employee had tested positive for the coronavirus, but that they had not entered the stock exchange building. Trading and regulatory oversight of all NYSE-listed securities will continue without interruption, the exchange said.

With airports and hotels emptying and airlines asking staff to take unpaid leave to stem losses, the S&P 1500 airlines index sank 20.8 percent on Wednesday. Shares in major hotel operators Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt fell by about 12 percent to 19 percent.

“The market’s really reacting to fear and uncertainty and we don’t think it’s over until it finds a floor on stock prices. The floor will have to be found in containment of the viral spread and limiting the economic toll of the virus,” said Nela Richardson, investment strategist at Edward Jones.

US Market Update | Stocks dive deeper on Wall Street as market extends losses; Dow Jones drops 1,547 points, S&P 500 falls 6.4% while Nasdaq slips 5.3% pic.twitter.com/Nk8mmicVKo
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 18, 2020

By Wednesday’s close, the Dow was up just 0.4 percent from where it was on 20 January, 2017, the day of Trump’s inauguration, although it remains up almost 9% from when Trump unexpectedly won the presidential election on 8 November, 2016, often referred to as the “Trump Bump.”

The S&P 500 is now down about 29 percent from the record closing high it notched on 19 February, as the coronavirus-inspired selloff ended Wall Street’s longest-ever bull run. In one of the most dire forecasts yet issued for the potential hit from the epidemic, a JP Morgan economist said the US economy could shrink 4 percent this quarter and 14 percent next quarter, and for the year it is likely to shrink 1.5 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1,338.46 points, or 6.3 percent, to 19,898.92, the S&P 500 lost 131.09 points, or 5.18 percent, to 2,398.1, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 344.94 points, or 4.7 percent, to 6,989.84. The dramatic stimulus measures have only provided short-lived bounces in equities, with investors factoring in a global recession and worrying about the duration of the damage extending into the summer.

Wednesday’s selling at one point triggered another 15-minute trading cutout at a 7 percent decline in yet another day of volatile trading. The Cboe Volatility index ended up at 76.45. “This market went from a position of where we were fearless back at the beginning of February to some days like today where you feel hopeless about what’s going on in the market,” said Wayne Wicker, chief investment officer of Vantagepoint Investment Advisers.

#BREAKING | S&P 500 falls 7% triggering a marketwide ‘circuit breaker’ trading halt while Nasdaq Composite slips 6.3%. Dow Jones drops 1,660 points pic.twitter.com/nr5hyLMYAx — CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) March 18, 2020

The day’s worst-performing S&P sector was the S&P 500 energy sector, which closed at its lowest level since early 2003. US crude futures fell nearly 17% on Wednesday, having touched their lowest prices in 18 years.

Worries about mass debt defaults or writedowns pressured US lenders, sending the S&P 500 banking subsector down 7.9 percent.

Shares in planemaker Boeing Co, long a symbol of US tech and industrial power, sank another 17.9 percent.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 12.71-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 8.79-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted five new 52-week highs and 294 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 11 new highs and 1,214 new lows.

Volume on US exchanges was 18.51 billion shares, compared to the 14.6 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

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Updated Date: Mar 19, 2020 14:13:32 IST

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