Sensex and Nifty declined amid profit booking in sync with losses in global equity indices

Domestic stocks markets closed with a sharp decline on Friday, January 15, 2021. Sensex and Nifty today declined 1.11 per cent amid profit booking in sync with losses in global equity indices.

Rising coronavirus cases across the US, Europe and China weighed on investors sentiment. Global cues were negative as the $1.9 trillion 'American Rescue Plan' was countered by weak job data in the US.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed 549.49 points or 1.11 per cent down at 49,034.67 and the NSE Nifty fell 161.90 points or 1.11 per cent to close at 14,433.70. The Nifty Bank lost 272.95 per cent or 0.84 per cent to settle at 32,246.80.

The broader market at BSE also fell. The BSE Mid-Cap index plunged 1.25 per cent and the BSE Small-Cap index slipped 1.06 per cent.

Sellers outpaced buyers. On the BSE, 1080 shares rose and 1946 shares fell. A total of 137 shares were unchanged. On the Nifty 50 index, 8 shares advanced and 42 shares declined. The top five gainers on Nifty block were Tata Motors (up 6.65 per cent), Bharti Airtel (3.95 per cent), UPL (up 2.63 per cent), ITC (up 1.75 per cent) and Grasim (up 1.27 per cent). The top five losers were Tech Mahindra (down 3.95 per cent), HCL Technologies (down 3.72 per cent), Wipro (down 3.63 per cent), GAIL (down 3.33 per cent) and ONGC (down 3.13 per cent).

COVID-19 Update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 9,31,05,607 with 19,94,440 deaths. India reported 2,13,027 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,51,918 deaths while 1,01,62,738 patients have been discharged. India continues to leap ahead in its fight against COVID-19 with over one crore one lakh 62,000 recoveries so far. With this, the national recovery rate has further improved to 96.53 per cent. The number of daily infections also continues to remain below 20,000 with only 15,590 cases being reported in the past 24 hours. During the same period, nearly 16,000 people have recovered from the pandemic.

$1.9 trillion Coronavirus plan

US President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan on Thursday to end "a crisis of deep human suffering" by speeding up vaccines and pumping out financial help to those struggling with the pandemic's prolonged economic fallout. Biden proposed $1,400 checks for most Americans which on top of $600 provided in the most recent COVID-19 bill would bring the total to the $2,000 that Biden has called for.

The Labor Department's weekly jobless report showed the number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits increased more than expected last week, underscoring the impact of a resurgence in COVID-19 infections.

Besides, Donald Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for the second time in his tenure on January 13, 2021. The House of Representatives voted 232-197 on the proposal to oust him. He is the only American head of state to face the stringent action twice, here are the former US presidents who faced impeachment.