Markets rebound amid steps to fight corona

Mumbai: A day after suffering their biggest single-day collapse, benchmarks Sensex and Nifty on Tuesday staged a sharp recovery in line with global markets as investors held out hopes that measures by governments across the world will offset the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The BSE gauge Sensex closed 692.79 points or 2.67 per cent higher at 26,674.03, after a highly volatile trading session. The index swung between a high of 27,462.87 and a low of 25,638.90 during the day. Likewise, the NSE barometer Nifty settled 190.80 points, or 2.51 per cent, up at 7,801.05.

Both Sensex and Nifty had suffered their worst ever single-session drop in history on Monday. Indices had closed with up to 13 per cent plunge. On Tuesday, Indian equities followed an improved investor sentiment in Asia after the Federal Reserve announced limitless bond-buying programme to support the US economy. Top gainers in the Sensex pack included Infosys, Bajaj Finance, HUL, Maruti, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries; while M&M, IndusInd Bank, ITC, PowerGrid and L&T were among the losers. Sectorally, BSE IT, teck, energy, FMCG, auto, bankex, finance and metal indices advanced up to 6.95 per cent. While realty, capital goods and basic materials indices ended up to 2.01 per cent lower. In the broader market, BSE midcap and smallcap indices rose up to 1.56 per cent. With the coronavirus lockdown hitting the Indian industry hard and causing job losses, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said an economic package to help tide over the crisis will be announced very soon.