Taking Stock | COVID fear returns to spook market; Sensex, Nifty down 1%
By The money control
Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finserv and UltraTech Cement were the top Nifty losers, sliding between 2.1 and 6.3 percent
Spiralling coronavirus cases in China and the Bank of Japan’s decision to keep interest rates elevated for a longer period added to the volatility in the Indian market which got caught in the negative sentiment after opening on a strong note.
At close, the 30-pack BSE Sensex was down 635 points, or 1.03 percent, at 61,067, while the Nifty lost 186 points or 1.01 percent, to end the volatile day at 18,199.
Tracking positive global cues, Indian shares opened higher but as reports of worsening COVID situation in China started coming in, the sentiments soon turned negative.
The government and its think tank Niti Aayog sounded alert about the emerging COVID situation and its implications, further dampening the mood.
“The benchmark indices dropped yet again on the back of the Covid scare in China and elsewhere, but today’s fall was more noticeable to participants since the red colour on the screen engulfed all over barring pathology labs, hospitals and select pharma counters involved in Covid-related drugs,” said S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities.
Barring healthcare and IT, all sectoral indices ended in the red even as developed markets continued to trade in the green in early sessions.
The Nifty Pharma was up 2.4 percent, while Nifty IT edged higher by half a percent. Metals and financials were the top losers, down more than 2 percent each. Realty and autos ended 1.6 and 1.4 percent lower.
Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finserv and UltraTech Cement were the top losers on the Nifty, sliding between 2.1 and 6.3 percent.
