Domestic shares ended with steep losses on Friday, as coronavirus cases showed no signs of abating while negative global cues further impacted sentiments. The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus worldwide surpassed 1 million on Thursday, resulting in more than 54,000 deaths so far. Active coronavirus cases in India rose to 2,088 while 56 people have died from the infection.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slipped 674.36 points or 2.39% at 27,590.95. The Nifty 50 index shed 170 points or 2.06% at 8,083.80.

Weakness in the market were led by banking stocks while pharma shares bucked weak market trend. Banks stocks slumped after Moody's Investors Service on 2 April 2020 changed the outlook for the Indian banking system to negative from stable.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 1.17% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.03%. The decline in both these indices was lesser than the Sensex.

The market breadth favoured the buyers. On the BSE, 1135 shares rose and 1104 shares fell. A total of 179 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

IHS Markit announced Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) numbers for India yesterday, 2 April 2020. The headline seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing PMI fell from 54.5 in February 2020 to 51.8 in March 2020. Weighing on the headline figure was slowdown in production growth during March.

Commenting on the latest survey results, Eliot Kerr, Economist at IHS Markit, said: The Indian manufacturing sector remained relatively sheltered from the negative impact of the global coronavirus outbreak in March, however, there were pockets of disruption and a clear onset of fear amongst firms. New orders and output both grew at softer rates, but those readings were relatively tame compared to those seen at goods producers in Europe and other parts of Asia. The most prominent signs of trouble came from the new export orders and future activity indices, which respectively indicated tumbling global demand and softening domestic confidence. Should the trajectory of injections continue in the same vein, the Indian manufacturing sector can expect a much sharper negative impact in the coming months, similar to the scale seen in other countries.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged lower to 76.01 compared with its previous closing of 75.60.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.298% as compared with 6.138% in the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2020 settlement rose $2.41 to $32.35 a barrel. The contract rose 21% or $5.20 to settle at $29.94 a barrel in the previous trading session.

The OPEC+ alliance has reportedly planned an extraordinary meeting for Monday (6 April 2020) via webinar to try and broker a deal on production cuts following mediation by US President Donald Trump this week between Saudi Arabia and Russia on their oil price war. The Russian energy minister Alexander Novak is yet to confirm his participation.

OPEC+ consists of OPEC, Russia and nine other allies, who have been coordinating a series of production cuts aimed at propping up the market since 2017. But the alliance was nearly terminated at its last meeting on 6 March 2020, when Russia rejected a Saudi-led OPEC proposal for deeper cuts to combat the coronavirus outbreak's impact on the oil market.

MCX Gold futures for 3 April 2020 settlement rose 1.02% to Rs 43,680.

Global Markets:

European and Asian shares fell across the board on Friday. An overnight surge in oil prices, which saw US crude futures soaring more than 24% failed to cheer Asian markets.

On the economic data front, a private survey released Friday showed China's services sector shrank further in March. The Caixin/Markit services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for March was at 43 following a record low of 26.5 in February. PMI readings below 50 indicate contraction, while figures above that level signify an expansion.

The headline IHS Markit composite PMI for the euro zone collapsed from 51.6 in February to an all-time low of 29.7 in March.

US stocks on Thursday finished near the highs of the session, as investors appeared to focus on hope that a détente between some of the biggest oil producers on the planet might be achieved to substantially curb oil production and stabilize battered prices.

US President Donald Trump reportedly tweeted that he had been in contact with Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and that he expected the Saudis and Russia to cut production of 10 million to 15 million barrels a day.

Meanwhile, the US trade deficit narrowed to $39.9 billion in February from $45.5 billion in January.

The US Labour Department said Thursday that initial jobless claims surged to more than 6 million last week, reaching a new record as Coronavirus-related shutdowns roll through the country.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index fell 5.27% to 17,249.30, extending decline for second day. The index has fallen 9.90% in two sessions.

Banking stocks faced serious selling pressure as Moody's Investors Service changed the outlook for Indian banking system to negative from stable. “We have changed the outlook for the Indian banking system to negative from stable. Disruptions to economic activity from the coronavirus outbreak will exacerbate a slowdown in India's economic growth, Moody's said.

Among the public sector banks, Canara Bank (down 6.81%), State Bank of India (down 5.92%), Bank of Baroda (down 4.88%), Punjab National Bank (down 2.62%), Andhra Bank (down 1.42%) and Central Bank (down 1.14%) tumbled.

Among the private sector banks, Axis Bank (down 9.16%), IndusInd Bank (down 8.49%), Bandhan Bank (down 6.8%), City Union Bank (down 3.67%), Federal Bank (down 3.51%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 2.01%) and HDFC Bank (down 1.95%), declined.

ICICI Bank slumped 8.01%. The bank has announced a reduction in its savings bank account interest rate and term deposits. ICICI Bank has announced a reduction in its savings bank account interest rate with effect from 9 April 2020. For savings account balance below Rs 50 lakh, the interest rate will be reduced to 3.25% per annum (pa) from 3.5% pa and for above Rs 50 lakh it will be reduced to 3.75% pa from 4% pa. ICICI Bank also announced reduction in rates of term deposits of value Rs 2 crore by upto 50 basis points across various tenures effective April 3, 2020.

RBL Bank tumbled 15.53%. The bank said that it has lost about 8% of its deposits in the March quarter and its cost of deposits also declined on a sequential basis in the same period. RBL Bank said it has strong operating profit trajectory for Q4 with Net Interest Margin (NIM) at an all-time high and comfortable liquidity position. The bank said its liquidity ratio stood at approximately 127% for March 2020 and its cost of deposits and cost of funds are lower on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis. The private lender witnessed some run-offs of deposits in this quarter (under 8%), since the last quarter. The deposit reduction was essentially in bulk deposits from government entities/corporations, while the banks retail deposits remained stable.

The Nifty Pharma index jumped 4.77% to 7,361.60. The index fell 2.09% in the previous session.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 9.42%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (up 4.63%), Wockhardt (up 4.10%), Cadila Healthcare (up 3.62%), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (up 1.76%), Divi's Laboratories (up 1.17%), GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (up 1.09%) and Abbott India (up 1.03%), advanced.

Lupin climbed 13.05%. The drug major on 3 April 2020 announced the receipt of the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its Aurangabad facility. The inspection for the facility was carried out by the USFDA between 10 and 14 February 2020 and concluded with no observations.

Cipla surged 8.60%. The drug maker announced the successful completion of Phase-3 clinical end-point study for fluticasone propionate and salmeterol inhalation powder (100/50 mcg).

Stocks in Spotlight:

Hero MotoCorp lost 3.39%. The two-wheeler maker said its total two-wheeler sales stood at 334,647 units in March 2020, down 42.43% from 581,279 units in March 2019.

Bajaj Auto slipped 1.55%. The company reported 38% slide in total sales (commercial vehicles+two-wheelers) to 2.42 lakh units in March 2020 as against 3.93 lakh units in March 2019. Bajaj Auto registered a 35% fall in the two-wheeler sales to 2.10 lakh units in March 2020 over 3.23 lakh units in March 2019. Sale of commercial vehicles slumped 55% to 31,599 units in March 2020 as compared to 69,813 units in March 2019.

Tata Motors fell 3.90% after the company announced that its sales in the domestic & international market in March 2020, stood at 12,924 units, down 82.69% compared with 74,679 units during March 2019. Total commercial vehicle sales slumped 87% to 7,123 units, while total passenger vehicle sales slipped 68% to 5,676 units in March 2020 over March 2019.

Meanwhile, Tata Motors informed that S&P Global Ratings has downgraded company's Long Term Issuer Credit Rating from B+/Negative to B/Stable. The credit rating agency has also downgraded Jaguar Land Rover Automotive's Long Term Issuer Credit Rating from B+/Negative to B/Negative. The rating agency said downgrade of company's credit rating is on the back of weaker than expected Credit Matrix owing to the disruptions and economic impact from the COVID-19 outbreak.

Eicher Motors fell 2.57%. The company on Wednesday, 1 April 2020, said its total two-wheeler (Royal Enfield) sales declined 41% to 35,814 units in March 2020 as against 60,831 units in March 2019. On a month-on-month basis, total Royal Enfield sales declined 43.63% in March 2020 from 63,536 units in February 2020. Total two-wheeler exports jumped 33% to 3,184 units in March 2020 compared with 2,397 units in March 2019.

TVS Motor Company crashed 9.34% after the company on Thursday (2 April 2020) said its total sales fell 55.50% to 144,739 units in March 2020 as against 325,323 units in March 2019. The total sales are down by 42.85% in March 2020 compared with 253,261 units in February 2020. Total two-wheelers sales fell 56.90% to 133,988 units in March 2020 as against 310,885 units in March 2019. Domestic two-wheeler sales slumped 62% to 94,103 units in March 2020 as against sales of 247,694 units in March 2019. Three-wheeler sales declined 25.54% to 10,751 units in March 2020 from 14,438 units registered in March 2019. Total exports fell by 34.30% to 50,197 units in March 2020 from 76,405 units in March 2019. Two-wheeler exports contracted by 36.88% to 39,885 units in March 2020 as against 63,191 units in March 2019.

Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) tumbled 10.16%. JSPL on Friday (3 April 2020) said it registered a 10% jump in consolidated sales to 7.92 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2019-20 over 7.22 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2018-19. Consolidated production grew 12% to 8.17 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2019-20 over 7.30 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2018-19. Domestic sales grew 12% to 6.04 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2019-20 from 5.41 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2018-19. Domestic steel production jumped 13% to 6.30 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2019-20 as against 5.59 metric tonnes (MT) in FY 2018-19.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone shed 0.14%. The company said it recorded 7% cargo volume growth to 223 MMT in FY20 over FY19. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone for the twelve-month period ended 31 March 2020 achieved a throughput of 223 MMT across its nine operating ports in India thus registering seven percent cargo volume growth on year on year basis, the company said in a statement on Thursday, 2 April 2020.

The domestic stock market slumped on Tuesday, dragged by weakness in IT and banks shares. Trading was volatile on account of expiry of weekly index options on the NSE.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 1,203.18 points or 4.08% at 28,265.31. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 343.95 points or 4% at 8,253.80.

Rising coronavirus numbers across the globe exerted downside pressure on equities. Globally, there have been over 874,600 confirmed cases of COVID-19. At least 43,430 people have died so far while 184,952 have recovered. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in India stands at 1,637.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index fell 2.18% and the BSE Small-Cap index slipped 1.06%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1128 shares rose and 1079 shares fell. A total of 169 shares were unchanged.

Selling was also triggered by MSCI deferring its decision on increasing India's weight in its global indices. It was widely expected that the global index provider would hike the country's weight, which could have attracted about $10 billion overseas money.

The Indian Ministry of Finance published a circular on October 2019 raising the statutory foreign portfolio investor (FPI) limit of Indian companies to the sectoral foreign investment limit, effective 1 April 2020. While the circular raises the statutory FPI limit to the sectoral foreign investment limit, it also provides an option for companies to restrict their respective FPI limits to a lower threshold, with the approval of the company's board of directors and its general body, before 31 March 2020, MSCI said on 31 March 2020.

MSCI will wait for the practical implementation of these changes and the systematic publication of the new sectoral limits applicable to Indian securities before making any changes to the MSCI Indexes. MSCI will therefore maintain the current FOL (foreign ownership limit) for Indian companies and will defer changes to the foreign inclusion factors (FIF) resulting from foreign ownership limit and foreign room changes as part of the May 2020 semi-annual index review (SAIR) and corporate events, it added.

MSCI said it would re-assess the situation prior to the August 2020 quarterly index review.

The domestic stock market will remain closed on Thursday (2 April 2020) on account of Ram Navmi.

Economy:

The government's fiscal deficit touched 135.2% of the full-year target at February-end, according to an official data released on Tuesday. In actual terms, the fiscal deficit or the gap between expenditure and revenue was Rs 10,36,485 crore, the data by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) showed.

The output of Eight Core Industries, carrying 40.27% weight in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), increased by 5.5% in February 2020 while output increased 1% in April to February 2019-20.

Meanwhile, the interest rate on small savings scheme has been cut. The Public Provident Fund will now offer 7.1%, after an 80 basis points cut in its interest rate. The interest rate on National Savings Certificate has been slashed by 110 bps to 6.8%. The interest rate on Kisan Vikas Patra has also been cut by 70 bps to 6.9%.

Foreign Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia fell across the board on Wednesday following the negative cues overnight from Wall Street amid lingering concerns about the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

In US, stocks ended lower on Tuesday as concerns remain over the spread of COVID-19 in the US and Europe in particular, with economic activity under lockdown amid a rising tally of infections and a mounting death toll.

In his latest appearance on Tuesday evening, early Wednesday in Asia, US President Donald Trump issues guidelines for 30-day social distancing while citing fears of a surge in the virus cases during the upcoming two weeks.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2020 settlement fell 85 cents at $25.50 a barrel. The contract fell 2 cents, or 0.09% to settle at $22.74 a barrel in the previous trading session.

Buzzing Indian Segments:

The Nifty Bank index fell 4.92% to 18,202.50. The index rose 1.93% on Tuesday.

Among private lenders, Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 8.81%), City Union Bank (down 7.44%), Axis Bank (down 5.5%), Bandhan Bank (down 4.32%), ICICI Bank (down 4.02%), HDFC Bank (down 3.75%), RBL Bank (down 3.17%) and IndusInd Bank (down 2.52%) slumped.

Among PSU banks, Punjab National Bank (down 5.72%), State Bank of India (down 5.26%), Bank of Baroda (down 4.39%), Punjab & Sind Bank (down 2.24%), Andhra Bank (down 1.42%) and Canara Bank (down 0.17%) tumbled.

The Nifty IT index slumped 5.48% to 12,063.85. The index jumped 3.61% to 12,763.65 on Tuesday.

Tech Mahindra (down 9.21%), Mindtree (down 9.04%), TCS (down 6.23%), Infosys (down 5.65%), Oracle Financial Services Software (down 5.23%), HCL Technologies (down 4.93%), Wipro (down 3.48%), Persistent Systems (down 2.11%) and Hexaware Technologies (down 0.07%) slumped.

Stocks in Spotlight:

FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) fell 5.17% at Rs 2179.25, snapping its two day winning streak. The stock had gained 7.38% in two trading sessions.

Shares of Glaxosmithkline Consumer Healthcare fell 4.63% to Rs 9530.55.

HUL on Wednesday (1 April) announced completion of GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare's merger with itself. The merger was announced on 3 December 2018 and was subject to obtaining necessary approvals, which have now been secured. Every shareholder of GSK Consumer Healthcare India will get 4.39 shares of HUL.

Maruti Suzuki India slipped 1.03%. The company's total sales tumbled 47% to 83,792 units in March 2020 from 158,076 units in March 2019. On a month-on-month (M-o-M) basis, total sales tanked 43.04% to 83,792 units in March 2020 from 147,110 units in February 2020.

Hero MotoCorp rose 2.21%. The two-wheeler maker informed that members of the promoter and promoter group bought 2.76 lakh shares (0.14% of capital) of the company. With the purchase of these shares, the promoter and promoter group shareholding in the company increased from 34.63% to 34.77%.

Escorts slumped 9.64%. The company's Agri Machinery Segment (EAM) in March 2020 sold a total of 5,444 tractors, registering a decline of 54.3% against 11,905 tractors sold in March 2019. On a sequential basis, total sales tumbled 36.8% from 8,601 units recorded in February 2020.

Ashok Leyland declined 4.53% after the company reported a 90% decline in total sales at 2,179 units for March 2020, as against 21,535 units in the same month last year. On a month-on-month (M-o-M) basis, total sales tanked 81.01% in March 2020 from 11,475 units in February 2020.

Eicher Motors slipped 0.66% after unlisted subsidiary VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV) reported 82.7% decline in total sales to 1,499 units in March 2020 from 8,676 units in March 2019. On a month-on-month basis, VECV's total sales declined 67.31% in March 2020 from 4586 units in February 2020.

Mahindra & Mahindra tumbled 4.33%. M&M's total sales slumped 88% to 7401 units in March 2020 as compared to 62952 units in March 2019. While the total domestic sales are down by 90% to 6130 units, total exports shrunk by 68% to 1271 units in March 2020 over March 2019.

M&M's Farm Equipment Sector's total sales fell 31% to 13613 units in March 2020 from 19688 units in March 2019. The company's domestic tractor sales declined by 27% to 13418 units while its exports crashed 84% to 195 units in March 2020 over March 2019.

Sterling and Wilson Solar (SWSL) jumped 4.68% at Rs 80.50. The company said that it has received additional Rs 500 crore against loans outstanding from Sterling and Wilson and its subsidiary Sterling and Wilson International FZE, which was facilitated by Shapoorji Pallonji and Company Private and Khurshed Daruvala (promoters), as per the revised schedule of repayment approved by the board of directors of SWSL and communicated to the stock exchanges earlier. The proceeds have been utilized to reduce our external borrowings by an equivalent amount, the company said in a statement. An amount of Rs 1,000 crore had already been repaid from the date of listing till 31 December 2019. With this the total repayment stands at Rs 1,500 crore (inclusive of principal and interest).

GM Breweries jumped 7.55% to Rs 332.45. The company has received a license to manufacture hand sanitisers from Food & Drugs Administration (FDA), (Maharashtra State, Thane) which is valid from 31 March to 30 June 2020. The company said the commercial production of hand sanitizers will commence shortly.

Coal India shed 0.43% to Rs 139.40. The coal miner said that its total provisional coal production in March 2020 stood at 84.36 million tonnes as compared to 79.19 million tonnes in March 2019, registering a 6.5% rise. Provisional coal offtake dropped 10.3% to 53.45 million tonnes in March 2020 as against 59.60 million in March 2019.

NMDC declined 2.13% to Rs 78.30. NMDC's total iron ore production in March 2020 was 2.76 million tonnes as against 4.04 million tonnes in March 2019, recording a fall of 31.68%. On a sequential basis, NMDC reported 14.81% fall in iron ore production from 3.24 million tonne reported in February 2020. Total iron ore sales declined 24.58% to 2.70 million tonnes in March 2020 as against 3.58 million tonnes in March 2019. On a sequential basis, total sales declined 7.22% in March 2020 as against February 2020.

Domestic shares rallied on Tuesday, mirroring gains in other global stock markets after data showed that manufacturing activity in China rebounded from record lows in March. Stocks also drew support from signs that the lockdown across much of Europe could be starting to have the desired effect of slowing the rate of new confirmed cases.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, surged 1,028.17 points or 3.62% at 29,468.49. The Nifty 50 index spurted 316.65 points 3.82% at 8,597.75.

Sentiment also improved after the media reported that the government has put off implementation of the uniform stamp duty on transfer of shares, debentures, futures, options, currency and other capital market instruments to 1 July 2020. The change was earlier notified to be implemented from 1 April 2020.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 2.49% and the BSE Small-Cap index gained 2.98%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1522 shares rose and 773 shares fell. A total of 157 shares were unchanged.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.138% at 16:55 IST compared with 6.209% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75.5325, compared with its close of 75.5925 during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement rose 91 cents at $23.67 a barrel. The contract fell $2.17, or 8.70% to settle at $22.76 a barrel in the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Tuesday as China's official manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for March came in better than expected.

China's official manufacturing PMI bounced to 52 in March, up from a record-low 35.7 in February.

In US, stocks surged on Monday, rebounding from a deep rout triggered by the coronavirus pandemic. The rebound was led by an 8% pop in Johnson & Johnson after it announced a vaccine candidate for the coronavirus.

US President Donald Trump extended the timeline for social distancing guidelines to April 30, which many believe will reduce economic damage in the long run.

Buzzing Domestic Segments:

The Nifty Metal index rose 5.19% to 1,585.90, reversing Monday's 3.03% decline.

SAIL (up 13.27%), Hindalco Industries (up 7.77%), Hindustan Zinc (up 6.26%), Tata Steel (up 6.14%), Hindustan Copper (up 5.94%), NMDC (up 3.51%), NALCO (up 3.39%), JSW Steel (up 2.92%) and Jindal Steel & Power (up 2.69%) advanced.

Vedanta jumped 5.11%. The company said its mining operations, which manufacture essential commodities, and the oil & gas business will continue across all sites during the lockdown imposed by the Centre to contain the spread of coronavirus.

The Nifty Pharma index advanced 4.07% to 7,176.50. The index has surged 11.57% in past six sessions.

Aurobindo Pharma (up 6.28%), Cadila Healthcare (up 5.95%), Ipca Laboratories (up 5.82%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 5.56%), Lupin (up 5.26%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (up 4.98%), Divi's Laboratories (up 4.35%), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (up 4.11%), Wockhardt (up 2.28%), Abbott India (up 2%), Strides Pharma (up 1.46%), Alkem Laboratories (up 1.34%) and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (up 0.08%) advanced.

Drug major Cipla fell 2.11% to Rs 423. The stock jumped 14.71% in the past three sessions.

Piramal Enterprises jumped 9.71% at Rs 938.80 after the company said a committee of board approved allotment of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) aggregating up to Rs 750 crore. The tenure of NCDs is 15 months and offers interest rate of 10.25% per annum.

Stocks in Spotlight:

ITC (up 7.84%), ONGC (up 7.64%), Tata Steel (up 6.14%), Tech Mahindra (up 5.96%) and State Bank of India (up 5.35%), were major gainers.

IndusInd Bank crashed 14.68% to Rs 351.15. The bank in a conference call hosted yesterday informed that it has seen a withdrawal of 10-11% of its deposits, largely led by a state government. Wholesale and retail deposits too saw a decline. The lender said it has replaced the outflows via various means such as long duration refinance/forex borrowings swapped to the Indian Rupee. The lender also said that the moratorium granted by the RBI should help its portfolio in various segments.

Reliance Industries (RIL) advanced 7.76% to Rs 1112.45. The company said its board will meet on 2 April 2020 to consider raising funds by issuing listed, secured/unsecured, redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) on private placement basis in one or more tranches/series.

Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals surged 10.08% to Rs 114.70. GNFC said that considering the prevailing unprecedented critical situation caused by the Corona Virus (COVID-19) pandemic / epidemic and prevailing nationwide lockdown situation, the operations of nine plants of the company situated at Bharuch complex are under complete shutdown.

Britannia Industries gained 8.35% at Rs 2681.10. The company informed that in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has taken various measures (including work from home) to ensure safety and well-being of all the employees and is ensuring compliance with the directives issued by the central government, state government and local administration in this regard. The company manufactures food products which are considered as essential commodities for the consumers. However, due to lock down ordered by the Government of India across the country to contain the spread of COVID-19, the operations of the company have also been disrupted.

Aster DM Healthcare gained 2.38%. The company announced the closure of its loss making pharmacies in Kuwait. The company said that it intends to exit from the Kuwait market by shutting down the loss making operations of the pharmacies. The drug maker expects to close all Kuwait operations by 31 May 2020. The company said it has been operating pharmacies in Kuwait through its subsidiary, Aster Kuwait Pharmaceuticals and Medical Equipment Company W.L.L (the subsidiary). As on 31 March 2020, the company's subsidiary contributed Rs 33.26 crore or 0.42% towards Aster DM Healthcare's consolidated revenues. The business had a negative net-worth of Rs 26.58 crore.

G.G. Engineering hit 5% upper circuit at Rs 30.90. The manufacturer of electric power generators said that the company has obtained order for supply of supply, installation, operation and maintenance of 25 plastic bottle crushing machine with advertisement right for five years at various location of 16 stations over Mumbai divisions from the Western Railway, Mumbai Central for the disposal of plastics in an efficient way.

Domestic shares tumbled on Monday as the coronavirus pandemic continued to spook investors. Market participants were concerned about the rising number of COVID-19 cases and the economic fallout of the worldwide lockdowns. After hitting an intraday high of 8,576, the Nifty ended below the 8,300 mark.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slumped 1,375.27 points or 4.61% at 28,440.32. The Nifty 50 index shed 379.15 points or 4.38% at 8,281.10.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Kristalina Georgieva on Friday (27 March) said the world has clearly entered a recession. The COVID-19 pandemic has driven the global economy into a downturn that will require massive funding to help developing nations, she added. Total Covid-19 infections worldwide surpassed 700,000 with more than 34,000 deaths.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index fell 2.13% and the BSE Small-Cap index lost 1.75%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 930 shares rose and 1351 shares fell. A total of 172 shares were unchanged.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.21% at 16:51 IST compared with 6.144% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75.5925, compared with its close of 74.89 during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement fell $2.20 at $22.73 a barrel. The contract fell $1.41 or 5.35% to settle at $24.93 a barrel during the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

European and Asian stocks fell across the board on Monday on weak risk appetite as the death toll from coronavirus pandemic surged, threatening the global economy as roughly one-third of the planet is on lockdown.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday extended the national social distancing guidelines to April 30, walking back his previous remarks that he wanted the country to reopen for business by Easter.

Meanwhile in Europe, the number of deaths from coronavirus in Italy fell for the second consecutive day on Sunday. A national lockdown looks certain to continue beyond April 3.

In US, stock indexes ended sharply lower on Friday, failing to get a lasting lift from approval by Congress of a $2 trillion economic stimulus package to counter the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, but equities booked double-digit weekly gains to take back a chunk of losses seen this month.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index slipped 6.06% to Rs 18,759.70 amid profit booking after a recent rally. The index added 18.04% in four sessions to end at 19,969 on Friday, 27 March 2020.

Among the public sector banks, State Bank of India (down 4.64%), Bank of Baroda (down 3.58%), IDBI Bank (down 3.05%), Canara Bank (down 3.05%), Union Bank of India (down 2.74%), Bank of India (down 2.25%), Central Bank (down 2.02%), Punjab National Bank (down 1.64%) and UCO Bank (down 1.64%) declined.

Among the private banks, Bandhan Bank (down 13.51%), Federal Bank (down 8.44%), HDFC Bank (down 7.96%), ICICI Bank (down 7.67%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 7.29%), RBL Bank (down 6.17%), Yes Bank (down 5.87%) and City Union Bank (down 5.14%) tumbled.

IndusInd Bank added 0.13% to Rs 411.55. CRISIL on 27 March 2020 reaffirmed the credit ratings on the fixed deposits/certificates of deposits/debt instruments of the bank.

IndusInd Bank said its Rs 1,500 crore Infrastructure Bond issue was reaffirmed at CRISIL AA+/Stable. The Rs 2,000 crore Tier-I bonds (under Basel III) was reaffirmed at CRISIL AA/Stable. The Rs 1,000 crore Tier-I bonds (under Basel III) was reaffirmed at CRISIL AA/Stable. The Rs 1,000 crore Tier-I bonds (under Basel III) was reaffirmed at CRISIL AA/Stable. The Rs 40,000 crore certificates of deposits was reaffirmed at CRISIL A1+. The short-term fixed deposit programme was reaffirmed at CRISIL A1+. The announcement was made on Saturday, 28 March 2020.

In a separate filing on Saturday, IndusInd Bank announced that it has paid Rs 156.44 crore as interest due in respect of Additional Tier I Bonds issued on 28 March 2019.

Shares of sugar companies witnessed strong buying demand. KCP Sugar and Industries Corporation (up 20%), E.I.D. Parry (India) (up 10.13%), Balrampur Chini Mills (up 10%), Shree Renuka Sugars (up 9.87%), Sakthi Sugars (up 7.69%), Dwarikesh Sugar Industries (up 5%), Dhampur Sugar Mills (up 4.99%), Triveni Engineering & Industries (up 4.97%), Simbhaoli Sugars (up 4.87%), Rana Sugars (up 4.58%), DCM Shriram Industries (up 3.86%) and Bajaj Hindusthan Sugar (up 0.21%) surged.

The media reported that sugar mills have ramped up production of hand sanitisers to cater its rising demand following the coronavirus outbreak. This could boost revenue of sugar companies.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Other than banks, Bajaj Finance (down 11.95%), HDFC (down 10.92%), Tata Steel (down 8.36%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 6.56%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 6.07%), Reliance Industries (down 3.11%) and TCS (down 2.33%) witnessed major selling.

Lupin rose 2.39%. The drug major on Monday (30 March) announced the receipt of the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for the company's Inhalation Research Center located at Coral Springs in Florida, USA.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries fell 1.33% to Rs 333.65. The company informed that the company received a communication from the USFDA indicating that the Halol facility has been classified as “Official Action Indicated” (OAI). The OAI classification implies interalia that the USFDA may withhold approval of any pending product applications or supplements filed from this facility till the outstanding observations are resolved. The company continues to manufacture and distribute existing products for the US market, thereby not likely to have any adverse impact on current business from the facility.

Abbott India surged 8.97% to Rs 15400. US-based Abbott on Friday, 27 March 2020, announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has issued Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the fastest available molecular point-of-care test for the detection of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), delivering positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results in 13 minutes.

Cadila Healthcare rose 0.14% to Rs 253.15. The company said it has received a tentative approval from the USFDA to market Carbidopa and Levodopa Extended-Release Capsules. The combination medication is indicated for the treatment of Parkinson's disease or Parkinson-like symptoms (such as shakiness, stiffness, and difficulty moving). The drug will be manufactured at the group's manufacturing facility at SEZ, Ahmedabad.

Hero MotoCorp slumped 5.49% to Rs 1568.95. The company said the operations at its Indian plants will continue to remain suspended beyond 31 March 2020 until 14 April 2020.

Tata Power Company fell 4.71% to Rs 32.35. The company said Adjaristsqali Georgia LLC (AGL), a Joint Venture (JV) between Tata Power, Norway's Clean Energy Invest (CEI) and International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced the start of commercial operation of the 178 MW Shuakhevi Hydro Power Project (Shuakhevi HPP) located in southwest Georgia.

Godfrey Phillips India shed 1.44% to Rs 908.90 after the company said it has suspended operations at all its factories and plant locations in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic. The impact on the operations of the company cannot be assessed at this point, it added. The statement was issued before trading hours today, 30 March 2020.

Motherson Sumi Systems tumbled 3.88% to Rs 60.75 after Moody's Investors Service assigned a Ba1 corporate family rating (CFR) to the company and has withdrawn the company's Baa3 issuer rating. At the same time, Moody's has placed the Ba1 CFR under review for further downgrade. The outlook has been revised to rating under review from negative.

Delta Corp hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 62.45. The company's board approved a proposal to buyback shares worth up to Rs 125 crore at a price not exceeding Rs 100 per share. The company said it will utilise at least 50% of the amount earmarked as the maximum buyback size for the buyback. Based on the minimum buyback size and maximum buy-back price, the company would purchase a minimum of 62.50 lakh equity shares.

The Sensex corrected on Friday, breaking its three-day rising streak. The Nifty, however, managed to close with minor gains above 8660 level. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday joined the global central banks in slashing interest rates to minimize the damage from Covid-19 crisis. Despite RBI's monetary bazooka, the sentiment was clouded by worries of evolving situation on COVID-19 crisis and its implications on the economy and corporate profitability.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex fell 131.18 points or 0.44% at 29,815.59. The index surged 1179.26 points in early trade to hit the day's high of 31,126.03.

The Nifty 50 index added 18.80 points or 0.22% at 8,660.25. It erased gains after spurting 397.45 points at the day's high of 9,038.90.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 0.29% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.28%.

The market breadth was almost even. On the BSE, 1143 shares rose and 1164 shares fell. A total of 174 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have offloaded Indian shares worth Rs 58006.68 crore so far in March 2020.

RBI Action:

On the basis of an assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation, the Reserve bank of India (RBI)'s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) at its meeting today (27 March 2020) decided to reduce the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 75 basis points to 4.40% from 5.15% with immediate effect. Accordingly, the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate stand reduced to 4.65% from 5.40%. Further, consequent upon the widening of the LAF corridor as detailed in the accompanying Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Polices, the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands reduced by 90 basis points to 4%. The MPC also decided to continue with the accommodative stance as long as it is necessary to revive growth and mitigate the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on the economy, while ensuring that inflation remains within the target.

RBI reduced the cash reserve ratio (CRR) of all banks by 100 basis points to 3% of net demand and time liabilities (NDTL) with effect from the reporting fortnight beginning 28 March 2020. This reduction in the CRR would release primary liquidity of about Rs 1,37,000 crore uniformly across the banking system in proportion to liabilities of constituents rather than in relation to holdings of excess SLR. This dispensation will be available for a period of one year ending on 26 March 2021.

Under the marginal standing facility (MSF), banks can borrow overnight at their discretion by dipping up to 2% into the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR). To provide comfort to the banking system, RBI increased the limit of 2% to 3% with immediate effect.

In order to mitigate their adverse effects on economic activity leading to pressures on cash flows, RBI will conduct auctions of targeted term repos of up to three years tenor of appropriate sizes for a total amount of up to Rs 1,00,000 crore at a floating rate linked to the policy repo rate.

RBI permitted all commercial banks, co-operative banks, all-India financial institutions and NBFCs to allow a moratorium of three months on payment of installments in respect of all term loans outstanding as on 1 March 2020. Accordingly, the repayment schedule and all subsequent due dates, as also the tenor for such loans, may be shifted across the board by three months.

In respect of working capital facilities sanctioned in the form of cash credit/overdraft, lending institutions are being permitted to allow a deferment of three months on payment of interest in respect of all such facilities outstanding as on 1 March 2020. The accumulated interest for the period will be paid after the expiry of the deferment period.

RBI said the global economic activity has come to a near standstill as COVID-19 related lockdowns and social distancing are imposed across a widening swathe of affected countries. Expectations of a shallow recovery in 2020 from 2019's decade low in global growth have been dashed. The outlook is now heavily contingent upon the intensity, spread and duration of the pandemic. There is a rising probability that large parts of the global economy will slip into recession.

RBI added that GDP growth of 4.7% for Q4:2019-20 within the annual estimate of 5% for the year as a whole, is now at risk from the pandemic's impact on the economy. High frequency indicators suggest that private final consumption expenditure has been hit hardest, even as gross fixed capital formation has been in contraction since Q2:2019-20. On the supply side, the outlook for agriculture and allied activities appears to be the only silver lining, with food grains output at 292 million tonnes being 2.4% higher than a year ago. A pick-up in manufacturing and electricity generation pulled industrial production into positive territory in January 2020 after intermittent contraction and/or lacklustre activity over the past five months; however, more data will need to be watched to assess whether the recent uptick will endure in the face of COVID-19.

As a consequence of COVID-19, aggregate demand may weaken and ease core inflation further. Heightened volatility in financial markets could also have a bearing on inflation, it added. Apart from the continuing resilience of agriculture and allied activities, most other sectors of the economy will be adversely impacted by the pandemic. If COVID-19 is prolonged and supply chain disruptions get accentuated, the global slowdown could deepen, with adverse implications for India. Upside growth impulses are expected to emanate from monetary, fiscal and other policy measures and the early containment of COVID-19.

The MPC is of the view that macroeconomic risks, both on the demand and supply sides, brought on by the pandemic could be severe. The need of the hour is to do whatever is necessary to shield the domestic economy from the pandemic.

The RBI measures came after Moody's Investors Service slashed India's growth rate for calendar year 2020 to 2.5% from an earlier estimate of 5.3%. The deep cut in growth estimate is due to rising economic cost of the coronavirus pandemic.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged higher to 74.81 compared with its previous closing of 75.16.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.145% compared with 6.225% in the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement was down 34 cents to $26 a barrel. The contract fell 3.83% or $1.05 to settle at $26.34 a barrel in Wednesday's trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 3 April 2020 settlement rose 0.18% to Rs 43,620.

Global Markets:

European shares tumbled while most Asian markets ended higher on Friday as uncertainty over the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak continues to weigh on investor sentiment.

On the economic data front, China's industrial profits for January-February plunged 38.3% year-on-year, according to the country's National Bureau of Statistics. The period covered by the data release coincided with lockdowns announced by the Chinese government to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country, where the disease was first reported.

A surge in reported infections in recent days has made the US the country with the largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases. Globally, more than 542,000 have been infected while at least 24,300 lives have been taken.

Meanwhile, the number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits surged to a record of more than 3 million last week as strict measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic ground the country to a sudden halt.

Meanwhile, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reportedly said on Thursday that the central bank will not run out of ammunition to keep the economy stable.

In US, stocks roared higher on Thursday, closing up for the third day in a row despite a report from the Labor Department that showed unemployment claims soared to a record 3.28 million last week, as the coronavirus pandemic shut down businesses across the nation.

Investors took some comfort from the overnight passage of a historic $2 trillion economic stimulus bill by the Senate, putting it one step closer to being signed into law to mitigate the economic fallout from the outbreak.

Buzzing Indian Index:

The Nifty Auto index fell 2.42% to 4,938.70, underperforming the other sectoral indices on the NSE.

Hero MotoCorp (down 8.04%), TVS Motor Company (down 5.54%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 4.81%), Eicher Motors (down 3.17%), Bajaj Auto (down 2.48%) and Escorts (down 1.22%) declined.

Tata Motors fell 0.21%. The board of Tata Motors approved plan to subsidiarize the firm's Passenger Vehicles (PV) including Electric Vehicles (EV) business into a separate subsidiary through a scheme of arrangement. The company said that this shall help provide differentiated focus for the PV and CV businesses and help each of them realise their potential. It added that this decision is a first step in its plans to secure mutually beneficial strategic alliances for the domestic PV business and help secure its long-term viability.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Friday reportedly allowed sale of 10% of unsold BS-IV inventory for 10 days post the lockdown, except in Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR).

Auto body FADA requested SC for an extension of 30 days to exhaust BS-IV inventory as vehicles worth over Rs 7,000 crore are still unsold.

Stocks in Spotlight:

NTPC rose 3.17% to Rs 83.05. The company said that it had signed a share-purchase agreement with the central government to acquire North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO) for Rs 4,000 crore and THDC India (THDCIL) for Rs 7,500 crore. The acquisitions are subject to regulatory approvals.

ICICI Bank rose 2.44%. The private lender has entered into an agreement to invest in Auxilo Finserve (previously known as Stellenyak General Finance) by acquiring 9.9% stake, or 34.1 million equity shares for Rs 51.1 crore.

Piramal Enterprises surged 3.73% after CARE Ratings affirmed CARE AA (outlook stable) credit rating for the additional non-convertible debentures issuance of up to Rs 1,000 crore by the company.

Phoenix Mills slipped 0.30%. The credit rating agency CRISIL placed its rating on the long-term bank facilities of Phoenix Mills on 'Rating Watch with Negative Implications'.

Sanghvi Movers hit a lower circuit of 5% at Rs 50.95. The company informed that ICRA had retained the long-term rating at [ICRA]A- and short-term rating at [ICRA]A2+. The outlook on the long-term rating has been revised to 'negative' from 'stable'.

HDFC Life Insurance Company slumped 7.64% to Rs 440.85 after the media reported that promoter Standard Life will sell up to 5 crore shares or 2.5% equity stake in the company. As on 31 December 2019, Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) 2006 held 14.73% stake while Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) held 51.45% stake in HDFC Life Insurance Company.

Yes Bank slipped 0.94% to Rs 26.40. The bank said its board has approved raising funds amounting to Rs 5,000 crore, in addition to Rs 10,000 crore cleared in January, through issuance of securities. The board of the bank has also been reconstituted.

Aurobindo Pharma spurted 8.55%. The drug maker said with regard to the USFDA inspection of Unit VIII, API manufacturing facility at Gaddapotharam, Hyderabad, the company has received the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) with Voluntary Action Initiated (VAl) status from USFDA.

The market extended rally for the third day on Thursday, supported by banks and FMCG stocks. Trading was volatile due to expiry of monthly derivatives contracts today, 26 March 2020.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 1,410.99 points or 4.94% at 29,946.77. The Nifty 50 index spurted 323.60 points or 3.89% at 8,641.45.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 3.49% and the BSE Small-Cap index gained 3.73%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1508 shares rose and 769 shares fell. A total of 172 shares were unchanged.

The Nifty 50 index has bounced 1031.20 points, or 13.55% in three sessions from its recent closing low of 7,610.25 on 23 March 2020.

FM Media Briefing Highlights:

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that a package worth Rs 1.7 lakh crore is ready for the poor who need immediate help like migrant workers and urban and rural poor.

FM announced Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Ann Yojna (for next 3 months) in which 80 crore poor people (2/3rd of India's population) are covered. In addition to already allotted 5 kg of rice/wheat per person, an additional 5 kg will be allotted free. Additional 1 kg pulse (according to regional preference) will be given.

FM added that 8.69 crore farmers will be immediately benefited through direct cash transfers. Installment of Rs 2,000 in the first week of April will be transferred, FM added.

For old age, divyang, pensioners (3 crore people covered), one-time amount of additional Rs 1000 in two installments through direct bank transfer (DBT) (hence no middlemen) over 3 months will be given.

FM announced an increase of Rs 2000 per worker on average as additional income in MGNREGA (5 crore families benefited).

FM said 20 crore women Jan Dhan Yojana account holders will get Rs 500 per month for the next three months.

The government will provide free LPG cylinders to woman beneficiaries of Ujjwala scheme. This will benefit 8.3 crore below poverty line (BPL) families.

FM also announced a Rs 50 lakh insurance per healthcare worker as a medical insurance cover for them for three months.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.226% at 16:55 IST compared with 6.304% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75.16, compared with its close of 75.94 during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement fell 32 cents at $27.07 a barrel. The contract rose 24 cents or 0.88% to settle at $27.39 a barrel during the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

European markets extended losses while most Asian markets ended lower on Thursday as investors awaited the passage and details of a $2 trillion stimulus package in the United States to combat the economic fallout from the coronavirus.

The US Senate on Wednesday passed a $2 trillion Coronavirus disaster aid bill that is the largest economic stimulus in the history of United States.

Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry said Thursday that the Singapore economy is now expected to shrink by between 1.0% and 4.0% this year. Official preliminary data showed Singapore's economy contracting 2.2% in the first quarter from a year ago.

Investors were cautious ahead of the latest US jobless claims data that's expected to show a massive spike in unemployment claims after businesses stateside closed their doors to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

In Europe, EU leaders will hold a virtual summit to discuss their response to the coronavirus outbreak amid some criticisms of a lack of coordinated response to the crisis. Italy and Spain are the worst-hit countries in Europe, with the death toll in each country surpassing 7,000 and 3,500 respectively. The death toll in the US has now surpassed 1,000.

In US, stocks on Wednesday finished well off their highs and the Nasdaq turned negative in the final minutes of trade, as the passage of a $2 trillion economic rescue package appeared to hit a snag. The Senate unanimously approved the trillion dollar economic relief package late Wednesday and the stimulus bill now heads to the House, which will push to pass it by voice vote Friday morning as most representatives are out of Washington.

Buzzing Indian Segments:

The Nifty FMCG index jumped 4.89% to 25,668.20, extending gains for third day. The index has added 10.71% in three sessions.

Marico (up 7.99%), Hindustan Unilever (up 6.77%), Godrej Consumer Products (up 5.95%), Britannia Industries (up 5.86%), GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare (up 5.58%), Dabur India (up 5.39%), Colgate-Palmolive (India) (up 4.41%) and Nestle India (up 4.19%) advanced.

FMCG stocks were in demand as direct cash transfer by the government could boost FMCG sales in rural India.

The Nifty Bank index jumped 6.36% to 19,656.50. The index has risen 16.19% in three sessions.

Among private sector banks, Federal Bank (up 9.13%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 7.66%), HDFC Bank (up 6.76%), Axis Bank (up 4.82%) and ICICI Bank (up 4.68%) rose.

IndusInd Bank surged 45.07% to Rs 436.95. The stock slumped 62.54% in the past eight trading sessions to Rs 301.2 on 25 March 2020, form its recent closing high of Rs 804 on 13 March 2020.

Bandhan Bank spurted 39.44% to Rs 215.65. The stock slumped 33.44% in the past three trading sessions to Rs 154.65 on 25 March 2020, form its recent closing high of Rs 232.35 on 20 March 2020.

Among public sector banks, IDBI Bank (up 7.87%), Union Bank of India (up 5.39%), Canara Bank (up 4.42%), Bank of India (up 3.77%) and State Bank of India (up 1.53%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Among index majors, Bharti Airtel (up 11.23%), Infosys (up 6.66%) and HDFC (up 6.47%) surged.

Cipla rose 2.64% after the company said it received US drug regulator's final approval for generic version of AstraZeneca Pharmaceutical's Nexium. Nexium is a proton pump inhibitor indicated for treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), reducing risk of NSAID-associated gastric ulcer, eradication of helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria to reduce the risk of duodenal ulcer recurrence and for pathological hypersecretory conditions, including Zollinger-Ellison syndrome.

JSW Steel slipped 0.27%. The company announced after trading hours yesterday, 25 March 2020, that the manufacturing operations in all the locations have been either scaled down or suspended (in certain locations). Consequently, the capacity utilisation is expected to go down significantly during this period of lockdown. The decision to scale down/suspend production is done to support the cause of containment of the pandemic COVID-19, notwithstanding the exception to manufacturing units with continuous operation and the units producing essential commodities (steel is classified as an essential commodity under the Essential Services Maintenance Act, 1981 (ESMA)), the exchange filing added.

NTPC rose 1% to Rs 80.50. The company informed that second Unit of 660 MW of Khargone Super Thermal Power Project has been added to Installed Capacity of NTPC on successful completion of trial operation. With this, the total installed capacity of Khargone Super Thermal Power Project, NTPC and NTPC group has become 1320 MW, 50355 MW and 58816 MW respectively.

REC rose 5.03% to Rs 87.75 after the company said its board has approved a proposal to revise upward its borrowing for the current financial year to Rs 94,000 crore from the Rs 90,000 crore estimated earlier. Besides, the board has also approved an Rs 1.10 lakh crore market borrowing by the company during the next financial year 2020-21, the company said in an exchange filing made after market hours yesterday. The board also approved the launch of capital gains tax exemption bonds (Series XIV) under Section 54EC of the Income Tax Act, 1961, for raising funds on a private placement basis for an amount of Rs 2,500 crore with a green shoe option to retain oversubscription.

Strides Pharma Science fell 2.94%. The company's flagship facility, KRS Gardens in Bangalore, Karnataka which was inspected by the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) in March 2020, has received the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR), thereby confirming the successful closure of the inspections.

Vinati Organics surged 13.32%. The chemical maker has shut down its manufacturing operations at two Maharashtra-based plants due to outbreak of Corona Virus.

Caplin Point Laboratories jumped 19.84% at Rs 244.30 after the company said it received final approval from the US drug regulator for Verapamil Hydrochloride injection. Verapamil Hydrochloride is a calcium channel blocker used in the treatment of cardiac conditions such as high blood pressure, arrhythmias and angina. According to IQVIA (IMS Health), Verapamil Hydrochloride injection USP had US sales data of approximately $28 million for the 12-month period ending December 2019.

InterGlobe Aviation fell 0.24%. The company on Wednesday said that the restrictions on the operation of international and domestic flights are likely to continue till 14 April 2020. The National lockdown announced by the Government of India with effect from 12:00 am on 25 March 2020 until 14 April 2020, it is likely that these restrictions on the operation of the company's international and domestic flights will continue until 14 April 2020.

India Cements soared 6.94% to Rs 102.50 after Mumbai-based billionaire Radhakishan Damani purchased 16 lakh shares for Rs 94.97 each via bulk deal on BSE yesterday, 25 March 2020.

The domestic stock market surged on Wednesday, tracking strong global shares. The rally was triggered by the US policymakers reportedly clearing a $2 trillion stimulus package to fight against fast-spreading coronavirus. The Nifty settled above the 8,300 mark, backed by strength in index major Reliance Industries and private sector banks.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, surged 1,861.75 points or 6.98% at 28,535.78. The Nifty 50 index jumped 516.80 points or 6.62% at 8,317.85.

Trading was volatile in morning trade as India entered into a 21-day lockdown starting 24 March midnight to curb the Covid-19 outbreak. The virus has infected more than 434,000 people and killed more than 19,600 across the world. More than 111,800 people have recovered. India has reported 11 deaths and over 562 cases so far.

The broader market bounced. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 3.53% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 2.84%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1213 shares rose and 989 shares fell. A total of 154 shares were unchanged.

Foreign Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia surged on Wednesday, after the media reported that US lawmakers have struck a $2 trillion stimulus deal to provide economic relief to American taxpayers and businesses hit by the coronavirus pandemic, in what stands to be the largest congressional bailout in US history.

In US, markets on soared Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average notching its biggest one-day point gain ever and its best percentage gain since 1933, a day after plumbing the lowest levels since 2016, amid growing optimism for a fiscal stimulus package aimed at combating the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic.

Buzzing Indian Index:

The Nifty Bank index jumped 8.43% to 18,549.05, extending its winning run to second day in a row. The index has gained 9.64% in last two trading sessions from its previous closing low of 16917.65 posted on 23 March 2020. The index is still down 43.12% from its record high of 32,613.10 hit on 30 December 2019.

Among private banks, Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 12.65%), HDFC Bank (up 11.77%), Axis Bank (up 7.83%), ICICI Bank (up 6.93%), City Union Bank (up 4.94%), RBL Bank (up 4.23%) and Federal Bank (up 1.46%) advanced.

Among PSU banks, State Bank of India (up 3.6%), Bank of Baroda (up 5.15%), Canara Bank (up 3.03%), Central Bank (up 1.31%) and United Bank of India (up 1.56%) climbed.

The Nifty Bank index made a strong comeback after correcting sharply in past one month. Investor and traders turned bullish on banking stocks after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman indicated that her ministry was readying an economic package to help the industry deal with the coronavirus crisis.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday gave its approval for continuation of the process of recapitalization of Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) by providing minimum regulatory capital to RRBs for another year beyond 2019-20, that is, up to 2020-21 for those RRBs which are unable to maintain minimum Capital to Risk weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) of 9%, as per the regulatory norms prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India.

The CCEA also approved utilization of Rs 670 crore as central government share for the scheme of Recapitalization of RRBs (i.e. 50% of the total recapitalization support of Rs 1340 crore), subject to the condition that the release of Central Government's share will be contingent upon the release of the proportionate share by the sponsor banks.

A financially stronger and robust Regional Rural Banks with improved CRAR will enable them to meet the credit requirement in the rural areas.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Reliance Industries (RIL) surged 14.65% to Rs 1,081.25. According to the media reports, the social media giant, Facebook, was close to an initial agreement to pick up a 10% stake in Jio, but discussions could not advance due to the global disruption following the coronavirus outbreak. A deal was to have been announced by March end, reports added. Report suggested that a deal with Facebook will help Mukesh Ambani achieve his ambition of cutting parent company RIL's debt to zero by March 2021. Meanwhile, reports further added that Google had also been engaged in separate talks with Reliance Jio.

Shares of insurance companies were in demand. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company (up 25.2%), ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company (up 16.44%), HDFC Life Insurance Company (up 10.68%), SBI Life Insurance Company (up 7.29%) and General Insurance Corporation of India (up 4.94%), surged.

Bajaj Finance rose 4.03% to Rs 2585.90. The company informed that it has learned about a con-call invite allegedly scheduled on 24 March 2020 between Bajaj Finance and analysts/investors was in circulation. The company clarified that it did not schedule the con-call. The invite was fake and could have been circulated with malafide intent. Investors are hereby requested not to take cognizance of such false/fake circulation without verifying the same with the company or on websites of stock exchanges, it added.

ONGC fell 1.60% to Rs 61.50. Moody's Investors Service downgraded ONGC's local and foreign currency issuer ratings to Baa2 from Baa1. At the same time, Moody's has downgraded ONGC's baseline credit assessment (BCA) to baa2 from baa1; the senior unsecured bonds issued by ONGC to Baa2 from Baa1; the senior unsecured bonds guaranteed by ONGC and issued by ONGC Videsh and ONGC Videsh Vankorneft to Baa2 from Baa1. The outlook on all ratings remains negative.

Nestle India rose 6.46% to Rs 14431.70. The company said that in view of the lockdown the operations in some of the locations (manufacturing, distribution centres/ warehouses, offices, suppliers) are scaled down or suspended. As the Company is in the manufacture and sale of food and beverage products, the company is in discussion with the authorities to continue operations in the factories/ distribution centres where the operations has been suspended.

Ashok Leyland fell 3.37% to Rs 34.45. The auto maker on Wednesday (25 March) informed that CARE Ratings revised outlook to negative from stable on the company's long/short term bank facilities worth Rs 3700 crore while reaffirming the rating at 'CARE AA+/ CARE A1+.

AAVAS Financiers slumped 4.24% to Rs 899.90. The housing financier informed on Wednesday (25 March) informed that all its branches and corporate office will remain closed in compliance with the Government of India's order. Employees supporting the critical business operations & essential customer service will continue to work from home as per the company policy that has been put in place under the business continuity plan, the company said in a statement before market hours on Wednesday.

The firm added that 100% of its loan portfolio is secured against mortgage. The portfolio is very granular in terms of customer profiles with average ticket size of sub Rs 10 lakh. It said that average loan-to-value (LTV) on the outstanding loan portfolio is less than 50%. It added that more than 95% of the EMI payments happen through electronic mode & banking channels. As of 24 March 2020, the company enjoyed a strong liquidity position (without considering principal repayments) as cash & cash equivalents of Rs 1092 crore and un-availed documented sanctions stood at Rs 1475 crore. The total debt repayment (including interest of Rs 182 crore) over H1 FY21 stood at Rs 431 crore.

The domestic market ended the volatile session with robust gains on Tuesday, amid recovery in global stock markets. Global stock markets reacted positively to the US Federal Reserve's open-ended asset purchase program on Monday, as well as other measures to keep the market functioning.

The S&P BSE Sensex jumped 692.79 points or 2.67% at 26,674.03. The Nifty 50 index climbed 190.80 points or 2.51% at 7,801.05.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.56% and the BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.05%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 923 shares rose and 1337 shares fell. A total of 166 shares were unchanged.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman Speech:

Addressing the media on Tuesday, the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said work is going on and we are very close to coming up with an economic package that will be announced sooner rather than later.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman announced 8-point economic relief, which include income tax compliance, GST compliance, customs compliance, MCA compliance, IBC compliance, fisheries compliance, bank-related compliance and commerce-related compliance.

The last date for the income tax return for the financial year 18-19 is extended to 30 June 2020. For delayed payments, interest rate has been reduced from 12% to 9%, the finance minister said. Aadhar-PAN linking date and Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme is postponed from April 1 to June 30, no additional 10% payment. The last date for March, April, May 2020 GST returns and Composition returns is extended to 30 June 2020.

FM relaxed mandatory requirement of holding board meetings by a period of 60 days, this relaxation is for the next two quarters. Providing relief for imports/exporters, FM said customs clearance is now an essential service, till 30 June 2020. During this period of lockdown, customs clearance will be operational 24x7.

For newly incorporated companies, FM announced additional time of 6 more months to file declaration for commencement of business. For a director in any company, less than minimum residency of 182 days, shall now not be treated as a violation, FM said.

Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Anurag Thakur, said that Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code default limit has been increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

FM further added that debit card holders who withdraw cash from any bank's ATM can do it free of charge for the next 3 months.

FM said that delay of upto 1 month in arrival of consignment for fisheries will be overlooked.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation on vital aspects relating to the menace of COVID-19 at 8 pm today, 24 March 2020.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.311% at 16:55 IST compared with 6.389% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75.94, compared with its close of 76.20 during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement rose $1.01 at $28.04 a barrel. The contract rose 5 cents or 0.19% to settle at $27.03 a barrel during the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

European and Asian stocks rose across the board on Tuesday after the US Federal Reserve launched unlimited bond buying and other fresh steps and the US Congress appeared closer to a deal on a massive stimulus package to boost the world's largest economy hammered by the coronavirus.

On Monday, the US Fed pledged that it will run an open-ended asset purchase program amid the global coronavirus outbreak. Fed said the program will run in the amounts needed to support smooth market functioning and effective transmission of monetary policy to broader financial conditions and the economy. The pledge is a new chapter in the Fed's money printing as it commits to keep expanding its balance sheet as necessary, rather than a commitment to a set amount.

In US, stocks booked sharp losses on Monday as the rapidly rising number of coronavirus cases across the nation overshadowed the Federal Reserve's pledge to buy unlimited bonds and bolster emergency lending facilities to support the flow of credit into the economy.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty FMCG index rose 3.24% to 23,935.30. The index slumped 10.60% on Monday.

Among the index constituents, Britannia Industries (up 10.74%), GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare (up 8.39%), Nestle India (up 5.43%), Godrej Consumer Products (up 3.29%), Marico (up 2.78%) and Colgate Palmolive (India) (up 1.76%) advanced.

Hindustan Unilever jumped 8.34%. HUL announced that it has signed an agreement with Glenmark Pharmaceuticals to acquire its intimate hygiene brand VWash. The deal includes the acquisition of intellectual property rights including trademarks, design and know-how related to the VWash brand. The consideration has been split into two parts involving an upfront cash payment upon closing of the deal and a deferred consideration over the next three years. The transaction is subject to fulfilment of certain conditions, and both parties would be working together to complete this in the next few months. Glenmark will continue to manage the business until the transaction is completed, and will also continue to manufacture for HUL for an agreed period of time.

The Nifty Pharma index rose 2.78% to 6,611.05. The index slumped 7.47% on Monday.

Aurobindo Pharma (up 10.99%), Strides Pharma Science (up 8.76%), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (up 3.5%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 3.41%) and Divi's Laboratories (up 3.27%) surged.

Stocks in Spotlight:

IT major Infosys jumped 12.69% after the company said the US Securities & Exchange Commission has concluded its investigation on the whistle blower allegations. As previously disclosed, in connection with the audit committee's investigation into certain whistle blower complaints which concluded in January 2020, Infosys cooperated with an investigation by the United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding the same matters.

Infosys said it received a notification from the SEC that it has concluded its investigation and the company does not anticipate any further action by the SEC on this matter. Infosys added that it has also responded to all the inquires received from the Indian regulatory authorities. The IT major said it will continue to cooperate with the authorities should there be any additional requests for information.

IndusInd Bank slumped 7.19% to Rs 312.35. The scrip tumbled 29.99% to hit the day's low at Rs 235.60. The bank announced the appointment of Sumant Kathpalia as the Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with effect from 24 March 2020, for three years. The bank said Romesh Sobti retired as MD & CEO of IndusInd Bank on 23 March 2020.

IRCTC fell 5% to Rs 858.50, extending its losing streak to seventh consecutive session. The outbreak of COVID-19 has made travellers reconsider going on vacation in this middle of a global pandemic, putting pressure on travel and tourism industry. The stock has tumbled 30% in seven trading sessions from its previous closing high of Rs 1228.05 hit on 13 March 2020. To curb the coronavirus outbreak, Railway Minister, Piyush Goyal, on 22 March 2020 announced that all passenger train services on Indian Railways including premium trains, mail/express trains, Konkan Railway, etc will be cancelled till 31 March 2020.

Avenue Supermarts (DMart) fell 0.76% to Rs 1813.05. The company said that some of its stores have remained closed for operations on certain days based on the directive by the local authorities. It added that it is currently selling only daily use essential items such as grocery and FMCG products at all its stores. The firm said it continues to receive regular supply of goods from all its suppliers and distributors.

Jubilant Foodworks rose 1.18%. The company announced that it has suspended dine-in facility across all Domino's Pizza restaurants. The company said this is in view of the emergent situation due to coronavirus (COVID-19). The company further said that it will mitigate the impact and promote the takeaway and delivery channels but there will be an adverse impact on the revenue of the company.

SpiceJet fell 3.28%. InterGlobe Aviation jumped 8.12%. India suspended all domestic flights, effective midnight 24 March 2020, to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic that has claimed thousands of lives across the world. In a statement, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said: “The operations of domestic schedule commercial airlines shall cease operations with effective from the mid night 23.59 IST hours on 24 March 2020. Airlines have to plan operations so as to land at their destination before 2359 hours on 24 March 2020. The restrictions shall not apply to solely cargo carrying flights.”

Key domestic benchmarks crashed on Monday after the rapidly spreading coronavirus pandemic sent major Indian states into a lockdown. Investors feared that the Covid-19 outbreak could bring economy to a grinding halt.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex crashed 3,934.72 points or 13.15% at 25,981.24. The Nifty 50 index slumped 1,135.20 points or 12.98% at 7,610.25.

The Sensex and the Nifty hit lower circuit limit of 10% in morning trade. The market resumed trading at 10:43 IST for pre-opening session. Normal trading started from 10:58 IST.

In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index tanked 12.83% and the BSE Small-Cap index dropped 12.27%.

The market breadth was extremely weak. On the BSE, 232 shares rose and 2037 shares fell. A total of 132 shares were unchanged.

With today's decline, the Nifty 50 index has fallen 38.78% from its record high of 12,430.50 hit on 20 January 2020.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have offloaded Indian shares worth Rs 48473.20 crore so far in March 2020.

COVID-19 Crisis:

Coronavirus has infected more than 341,000 people and killed more than 14,700 across the world. More than 99,000 people have recovered. India has reported 8 deaths and over 425 cases so far.

Meanwhile, after an overwhelming response to the Janata Curfew, 22 Indian states have announced a lockdown in 80 districts where Coronavirus cases have been reported so far. The lockdown will be in effect till 31 March 2020. During the lockdown, only essential services will be allowed to operate in all the districts which have reported cases or casualties due to Coronavirus. The lockdown is aimed at preventing a Coronavirus breakout in India.

SEBI Measures:

Taking note of the continued abnormally high volatility in the market due to Coronavirus scare, Sebi has come up with various measures, including revision of market wide position limit, to ensure orderly trading and settlement, effective risk management, price discovery and maintenance of market integrity.

These measures have kicked in from the beginning of trading today, 23 March 2020 and will be in effect for a period of one month. The position would be reviewed thereafter and appropriate view taken thereon.

Sebi also has revised market wide position limit (MWPL). For stocks in F&O segment meeting certain criteria, MWPL may be revised to 50% of the existing levels. The margin for stocks meeting specific criteria will be increased, apart from having revised position limits in equity index derivatives (futures and options). Sebi also proposed to raise margin for non-F&O stocks in cash market to 40% in a phased manner. The proposed margins would only be applied in the cash market and may be applicable for a period of one month. The regulator also proposed flexing of dynamic price bands for F&O stocks. Currently, the bands are relaxed in the event of market trends in either direction. In addition to the existing requirements, the dynamic price bands may be flexed only after a cooling-off period of 15 minutes from the time of meeting the existing criteria specified by stock exchanges for flexing.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.389% at 16:50 IST compared with 6.259% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee slumped against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 76.30, compared with its close of 75.20 during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement fell $1.43 at $25.55 a barrel. The contract fell $1.49 or 5.23% to settle at $26.98 a barrel during the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia tumbled on Monday on growing anxiety over the fallout from the Covid-19 coronavirus as no certainty was in sight on how long it would continue.

Markets across the world were hammered as a rising tide of national lockdowns threatened to overwhelm policymakers' frantic efforts to cushion what is likely to be a deep global recession.

In US, stock indexes finished another bruising week with sharp losses as panic over the coronavirus outbreak refused to abate, amid the acceleration of the global death toll. Investors haven't yet been comforted by the government's response to limit the economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic, whose severity and duration is unclear.

Buzzing Indian Index:

The Nifty Bank index slumped 16.24% to 17,018.35. The index has crashed 47.82% from its record high of 32,613.10 hit on 30 December 2019.

Among the private banks, Axis Bank (down 28.01%), Federal Bank (down 24.03%), IndusInd Bank (down 23.5%), City Union Bank (down 19.99%), ICICI Bank (down 17.88%), RBL Bank (down 17.67%), Yes Bank (down 13.4%), HDFC Bank (down 12.68%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 11.66%) slumped.

Among the public sector banks, Bank of Baroda (down 14.7%), State Bank of India (down 13.38%), IDBI Bank (down 12.64%), Bank of India (down 9.22%) and unjab National Bank (down 7.2%) tumbled.

Stocks in Spotlight:

IPCA Laboratories rose 0.01% to Rs 1372. The company informed that the US drug regulator has partially lifted an import alert on the company's two plants to ensure supply of Chloroquine Phosphate and Hydroxychloroquine Sulphate and its formulations. The exception for import has been made for the Hydroxychloroquine Sulphate and Chloroquine Phosphate APIs produced at the company's APIs manufacturing unit situated at Ratlam (Madhya Pradesh) and hydroxychloroquine sulphate tablets produced at the company's formulations manufacturing units situated at SEZ Indore, Pithampur (Madhya Pradesh) and Piparia (Silvassa).

Ashok Leyland slumped 18%, extending losses for third day. The commercial vehicles maker said its board has decided to acquire a 6.99% stake in Hinduja Leyland Finance (HLFL) as against its original plan to acquire 19%.

Titan Company dropped 11.97% after the jewellery manufacturer announced a shutdown of its offices since 17 March 2020. The company also said its plants are closed for a week starting from 23 March 2020 while retail stores will remain shut till 29 March 2020.

Hero MotoCorp dived 11.80%. The company has decided to halt operations at all its global manufacturing facilities - including in India, Colombia and Bangladesh ‐ and the Global Parts Centre (GPC) at Neemrana with immediate effect until 31 March 2020. This is considering the safety and wellbeing of its employees as top priority in view of the escalating COVID‐19 situation.

Mahindra & Mahindra crashed 9.06%. M&M said in light of heightened concern on spread of CoronaVirus in the State of Maharashtra, the company decided to suspend the manufacturing operations at Nagpur Plant with immediate effect and Chakan (Pune) and Kandivali (Mumbai) from Monday, 23 March 2020 night onwards.

Maruti Suzuki India slumped 17.02%. The company has taken a decision on production closure as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19. The company will shut production and office operations at its facilities in Gurugram and Manesar, Haryana with immediate effect till further notice. The R&D Centre at Rohtak will also remain closed, it added. The duration of this shutdown will depend upon Government policy, the company said in a statement.

Eicher Motors tumbled 11.87% after the automobile major declared that Royal Enfield has decided to suspend all operations globally from Monday, 23 March 2020 till Tuesday, 31 March 2020, on account of COVID-19 pandemic. The company said operations in manufacturing facilities across Tiruvottiyur, Oragadam and Vallam Vadagal in Chennai, technical centres across Chennai in Tamil Nadu have been closed. Overseas, offices and company owned dealerships in Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire are closed. The company has further issued advisories to all dealerships in India to shut down for the same time period, or follow local administrative orders, as may apply.

Tata Motors slumped 9.95%. The auto major on Monday said Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) will temporarily suspend production at its UK manufacturing facilities over the course of next week.

J.K Cement lost 7.49%. The company will shut down JK Cement Works, Nimbahera and JK Cement Works located at Mangrol, situated in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. It will shut down JK White Cement Works and JK Cement Works, Gotan both situated in Nagaur, Rajasthan. Lastly, it will also close down JK Cement Works, Jharli, Jhajjar Haryana, and JK Cement Works, Aligarh, U.P with immediate effect till further notice. The company further added duration of the shutdown will depend upon Government Policies.

Shree Cement slumped 10.27% after it announced shutdown of all its plants based within Rajasthan until 31 March 2020. The company said that the decision halt operation is in line with Rajasthan Government's direction for closure of all production facilities.

The market surged on Friday, as recovery in global stock markets triggered bargain hunting in domestic shares. The key indices came off day's high after Maharashtra announced lockdown across major cities in the state. However, the state government clarified that stock exchanges, clearing corporations, depositories, stockbrokers and Sebi registered participants will be exempted from the lockdown.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 1627.73 points 5.75% at 29,915.96. The Nifty 50 index was surged 482 points or 5.83% at 8,745.45.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 4.18% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 4.03%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1448 shares rose and 1007 shares fell. A total of 150 shares were unchanged.

The Nifty slumped 16.99% in the past four sessions to 8,263.45 on Thursday (19 March), from its closing high of 9,955.20 on 13 March 2020.

Four Cities of Maharashtra Locked Down:

In a major decision, Maharashtra government on Friday (20 March) ordered its residents from Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and Nagpur to stay at home unless required to make essential trips. The measure was aimed at containing the rapidly expanding coronavirus outbreak. Banks, grocery stores and medical shops, clinics and hospitals will remain open. Trains and buses will continue to operate.

Economy:

Fitch Ratings on Friday cut India's growth forecast to 5.1% for FY 2020-21, saying the coronavirus outbreak is likely to hit business investment and exports. Fitch had in December 2019 projected India's growth at 5.6% for 2020-21 and 6.5% in the following year.

Fitch said the number of people affected by coronavirus will keep rising in the coming weeks but that the outbreak will remain contained. However, there are downside risks to this scenario.

COVID-19 Crisis:

Coronavirus has infected more than 245,000 people and killed more than 10,000 across the world. More than 88,000 people have recovered.

India has reported 5 deaths and over 195 cases so far. In his address to the nation, PM Narendra Modi called for Janata Curfew on 22 March 2020 and urged people to avoid panic buying.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee traded at 75.14 compared with its previous closing of 75.12.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.259% compared with 6.410% in the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2020 settlement was up 3.16% to $29.37 a barrel. The contract rose 14.49% or $3.59 to settle at $28.47 a barrel in Wednesday's trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 3 April 2020 settlement rose 2.14% to Rs 40,685.

Global Markets:

European stocks extended gains while most Asian markets ended higher on Thursday following the overnight rebound in the US market, as massive relief packages announced by global central banks and governments to ease the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic boosted investor sentiment.

China's loan prime rates (LPR) on Friday were kept unchanged from their February levels, with both the 1-year and 5-year LPR left steady at 4.05% and 4.75%, respectively.

Developments on the ongoing global coronavirus outbreak continued to be watched. Europe has now become the epicenter of the global coronavirus pandemic, with Italy's death toll surpassing that of China, where the virus originated, and cases rising exponentially across the continent.

Central banks from across the globe, ranging from Australia's Reserve Bank of Australia to the U.S. Federal Reserve, have cut interest rates and announced plans to buy bonds in recent days as authorities worldwide race to combat the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

In US, stocks closed modestly higher on Thursday, in another volatile session, as central banks and governments pledged support for the economic shocks from the coronavirus pandemic.

Buzzing Segments:

The Nifty FMCG index surged 8.77% to 26,073.30. Hindustan Unilever (up 11.75%), Nestle India (up 7.94%), Britannia Industries (up 6.24%) and Dabur India (up 6.07%) advanced.

The Nifty IT index rallied 8.52% to 12,306.15. The index tumbled 16.24% in the past four trading sessions.

Wipro (up 10.77%), TCS (up 9.90%), HCL Technologies (up 7.91%) and Infosys (up 7.25%), climbed.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Escorts spurted 17.73% to close at Rs 675.20. Kubota Corporation, a leading global tractor and machinery manufacturer from Japan, will acquire 10% equity stake, on a post capital reduction basis in Escorts in order to integrate and deepen their relationship towards achieving their mutual ambition of global leadership.

As part of the deal, Escorts will issue and allot 1,22,57,688 equity shares through a preferential issue to Kubota at Rs 850 per equity share, subject to shareholders' and necessary regulatory approvals. Kubota's investment will constitute 9.1% of the equity stake on a pre capital reduction or 10% on a post capital reduction basis for a total investment of Rs 1041.90 crore.

Hero MotoCorp rose 6.51%. The company said it commenced commercial production at its new greenfield manufacturing facility, situated at Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh. This facility is the company's eighth manufacturing plant and sixth in India.

Meanwhile, the Hero MotoCorp has filed an interlocutory application before the Supreme Court of India seeking relaxation of the deadline set for sale or registration of BS-IV vehicles i.e. 31 March 2020.

Hero MotoCorp said that in view of the completely unforeseen developments that have arisen out of the prevailing force majeure situation on account of COVID-19, the company has prayed for an extension of time for a period of three months, as this has hampered all aspects of industry. The Ministry of Finance has also declared that the COVID-19 should be considered as a case of natural calamity and force majeure be invoked.

State Bank of India advanced 2.85%. SBI informed that a meeting of the central board of the bank will be held on 27 March 2020 to consider the extension of approval accorded by central board for raising equity capital from market up to Rs 20,000 crore from the market till 31 March, 2021 subject to the approval of shareholders, RBI and Gol. The board of the bank also approved divestment of entire equity stake (19.99%) held in A Little World.

Godrej Properties (GPL) jumped 8.32% after the company announced its entry into the Faridabad market with its first residential plotted development. This project will offer approximately 95,000 square meters (1 million sq. ft.) of plotted development potential offering attractive plot sizes along with good lifestyle amenities. The site is strategically located and offers a well-developed social infrastructure with multiple schools, hospitals, and retail spaces in vicinity. This micro-market also has excellent road connectivity to both Delhi and Noida. Shares of Godrej Properties were down 5.65% at Rs 620.

Syngene International added 1.77%. The company announced on Thursday (19 March 2020) that the newly setup manufacturing facility of the company situated at Mangalore Special Economic Zone, Karnataka has commenced operations and successfully processed the first order upon receipt of all statutory licences and clearances from relevant authorities. The company's third quarter business performance was driven primarily by growth in discovery services and supported by steady performance in development services and the dedicated R&D centres.

Biocon surged 8.83%. The drug maker announced that it has received the Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the post-approval and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) inspection of its small molecules API (active pharmaceutical ingredient) manufacturing facility at Bengaluru, conducted between 20 and 26 February 2020. The EIR has been closed with a 'VAI' classification for the observations. At the conclusion of the inspection last month the agency had issued a Form 483, with two observations, which were procedural in nature and are being addressed by the company.

Rites jumped 8.06%. The company informed that its board has approved the closure of the joint venture agreement with BNV Gujarat Rail, subject to the further approval. The joint venture (JV) company named BNV Gujarat Rail was incorporated on 9 December 2016 and subsequently a joint venture agreement was signed between Rites, Shapoorji Pallonji Roads and PCM Cement Concrete.

Praj Industries surged 9.57% after the company said its board will meet on 27 March 2020 to consider buyback of equity shares.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company fell 1.60%. The insurance company said it has rolled out a focused 'COVID-19 Protection Cover'. The policy has been launched in group insurance mode. Amid the contagious pandemic, this policy on diagnosis of COVID-19 (+ve) will pay 100% of the sum insured irrespective of hospitalization expenses.