Covid-19 Second Wave: Sensex Crashes Over 1,400 Points In Early Trade; Nifty Hovers Around 14,400 Level

With the second wave of pandemic turning out worse than expected, there is grave uncertainty about its impact on the economy and markets, believe industry experts.

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As there is no respite in sight with the Covid-19 cases surging, the Sensex on Monday crashed over 1,400 points to touch 48,164.32 points with industry heavyweights including HDFC twins, ICICI Bank, and Reliance Industries taking a hit.

The broader NSE Nifty was down 431.90 points or 2.91 per cent to touch 14,402.95 levels. IndusInd Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, tanking around 8 per cent, followed by SBI, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Auto, Titan, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finserv, and Maruti, as per the news agency PTI. On the other hand, Infosys remained the sole gainer.

In the earlier session, Sensex lost 154.89 points to settle at 49,591.32, and Nifty slipped 38.95 points or 0.26 per cent to 14,834.85. Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 653.51 crore on Friday, according to provisional exchange data.

With the second wave of pandemic turning out worse than expected, there is grave uncertainty about its impact on the economy and markets, believe industry experts.

The viral disease has hit the financial nerve of India with Maharashtra registering the highest number of cases. Meanwhile, in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Tokyo were in the red in mid-session deals, while Seoul was trading with mild gains.

Meanwhile, Tata Consultancy Services, HDIL, California Software, Cupid Trades & Finance, and Lloyds Metals and Energy are scheduled to announce their quarterly earnings on Monday. The rupee was at its lowest against US dollar since 21 August, as per Mint.

 

Golbally, international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.05 per cent higher at $62.98 per barrel.