Sensex Falls Over 100 Points, Nifty Slips Below 11,300 Amid Volatile Trade

Domestic stock markets reversed early gains to move lower on Wednesday morning, a day after benchmark indices jumped over 1 per cent following seven days of fall. The S&P BSE Sensex index fell as much as 129.31 points to hit 38,494.39 on the downside in the first few minutes of trade, and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark slid to as low as 11,263.50, down 39.8 points from the previous close. A surprise rate cut by the US central bank overnight to shield the world's largest economy from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic fuelled hopes the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will follow by lowering the repo rate further from a more than nine-year low, say analysts. 

At 9:23 am, the Sensex traded 90.65 points - or 0.23 per cent - lower at 38,533.05, while the Nifty was down 12.90 points - or 0.11 per cent - at 11,290.40. 

Market breadth was negative, with 431 stocks on the BSE trading higher and 656 moving lower.

On the 50-scrip benchmark index, 32 stocks traded lower at the time. Top percentage losers were Vedanta, Zee Entertainment, Tata Motors, JSW Steel and Tata Steel, down between 1.78 per cent and 3.14 per cent. 

On the other hand, Bajaj Auto, Asian Paints, Titan, HCL Tech and UPL - up between 0.67 per cent and 1.57 per cent - were the top Nifty gainers.

HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries were the top drags on the Sensex.

Equities in other Asian markets were mixed as an unscheduled rate cut by the Federal Reserve, aimed at shielding the world's largest economy from the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, did little to soothe investor fears over the severity of the pandemic and its impact on global business.

In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged 0.2 per cent higher after easing hopes drove gains on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei was either side of flat in choppy trade and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index fell 1.2 per cent.

Overnight in the US, Wall Street benchmark indices fell sharply after the Fed lowered the key lending rate by 50 basis points cut with commentary highlighting the limits of monetary policy.

The Fed's decision to cut interest rates before its next scheduled policy meeting on March 17-18 reflected the urgency with which the central bank feels it needs to act in order to prevent the possibility of a global recession.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Tuesday that it is monitoring the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the economy and is ready to take necessary action to ensure orderly functioning of financial markets. 

On Tuesday, the S&P BSE Sensex index had risen 479.68 points - or 1.26 per cent - to end at 38,623.70 and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark settled at 11,303.30, up 170.55 points - or 1.53 per cent - from the previous close, snapping a seven-day losing streak in which they lost 7.69 per cent and 8.19 per cent respectively.