Sensex closes below 59,500-mark, Nifty settles below 17,650 level

After hovering near the flat line for most of the session, domestic equity barometers tumbled in afternoon trade and ended with significant cuts on Wednesday, October 6, 2021. The Sensex closed below the 59,500 mark while the Nifty settled below the 17,650 level.

The S&P BSE Sensex plunged 555.15 points, or 0.93 per cent, to 59,189.73. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 176.30 points, or 0.99 per cent, to 17,646. The Nifty Bank dropped 219.45 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 37,521.55.

In the broader markets at BSE, the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap fell 1.22 per cent and 0.55 per cent, respectively.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1441 shares rose and 1841 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 at the NSE, 8 shares advanced and 42 shares declined. The top five gainers on Nifty were Tata Consumer Products (up 2.48 per cent), ONGC (up 2.23 per cent), UPL (up 1.66 per cent), Britannia (up 1.31 per cent) and HDFC Bank (up 1.10 per cent). The top five losers on Nifty were Hindalco (down 4.10 per cent), SBI Life (down 3.64 per cent), IndusInd Bank (down 3.39 per cent), Tata Steel (down 3.25 per cent) and JSW Steel (down 3.21 per cent).

COVID-19 Update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 235,805,910 with 4,816,244 deaths. India reported 246,687 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 449,538 deaths, data showed.

Economy

International rating agency Moody's has upgraded India's sovereign rating outlook to 'stable' from 'negative' citing an ebbing of the risks from COVID-19 and negative feedback between the real economy and financial system. Upgrading the outlook, Moody's cited broadening of the economic recovery and receding financial sector risks. The agency noticed the rising vaccinations which have reduced growth risks to growth from subsequent Coronavirus infections.

While it retained India's rating at Baa3, Moody's said it expects real GDP to surpass pre-pandemic levels of 2019-20 this year itself. It expects 2021-22 to see 9.3 per cent growth in GDP, followed by 7.9 per cent next year.

The US trade deficit increased to a record $73.3 billion in August as a small gain in exports was swamped by a much larger increase in imports. The Commerce Department reported on Tuesday that the monthly trade deficit increased 4.2 per cent in August, rising to an all-time high, surpassing the previous record of $73.2 billion set in June.