Bloodbath on Dalal Street today: 8 things investors must know

Sensex hits 15-mth low, sinks over 2,400 pts

Domestic stock markets crashed on Monday, with  the Benchmark indices trading over six per cent lower. Investor sentiment remained subdued amid the rapid spread of novel coronavirus across the world and developments at YES Bank. 

The S&P BSE Sensex shed over 2,400 points, or 6.4 per cent, to trade at 35,144 levels. The broader Nifty50 index slipped below 10,350, down about 650 points, or six per cent. All Nifty sectoral indices were in the red. Nifty Metal index, down four per cent, bled the most. Traders believe the mounting fear of recession in major economies due to the coronavirus outbreak has sent equities into a downward spiral. 

Markets plunge on Covid-19 fears; Rs 5 trn investor wealth wiped off

Uncertainty over the economic impact of coronavirus outbreak is on the rise. The carnage in the equity market wiped out investor wealth worth by nearly Rs 5 trillion in early trade. Traders said investor sentiments also remained fragile amid incessant foreign fund outflows. On a net basis, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth about Rs 3,595 crore on Friday, data available with stock exchanges showed.

Death toll rises to 3,831, total number of confirmed cases hit 110,098 worldwide

More than 110,098 people have been infected by the Coronavirus across the world and at least 3,831 have died as the disease upturns the modest growth in the world economy since mid-2019 and threatens key sectors of India's economy. Meanwhile, 62,302 people have recovered from the disease. A three-year-old child who recently travelled to Italy and a 63-year-old woman, who had a travel history to Iran, tested positive for the coronavirus on Monday, taking India's total number of cases to 43. 

According to Moody's Global Macro Outlook 2020-21, coronavirus will hurt economic growth in many countries through the first half of 2020. The global spread of the coronavirus is resulting in simultaneous supply and demand shocks.

Crude oil plunges 30% to $30 a barrel; $20 possible going ahead: Analysts

Brent crude hit $31 a barrel, down nearly 30 per cent in trade on Monday and extended its 10 per cent weekend drop as the world’s biggest producers failed to agree on production cuts, kicking off a price war and sending oil into a freefall.

All Sensex components were trading in the red, led by losses in ONGC (down 15%), Reliance Industries (down 13%), IndusInd Bank (down over 8.5%), and Tata Steel (down over 7%). 

Reliance Industries Suffers Biggest Single-Day Loss In At Least 10 Years

Shares of companies engaged in crude oil exploration business fell sharply after crude prices crashed in international markets. Reliance Industries slumped as much as 13.65 per cent, its biggest single-day fall in at least 10 years, to hit an intra-day low of 1,096.65, data from BSE showed

This happened after shares of Saudi state oil company Aramco slumped below the initial public offering (IPO) price on Sunday for the first time since they began trading in December, after Opec's pact with Russia to restrict oil supplies fell apart. In August last year, RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani had announced his company would sell a 20 per cent stake in the oil-to-chemical business to the Saudi national oil company.

ONGC's m-cap slips below Rs 1 trn-mark after 15 years on oil price crash

Shares of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) hit an over 15-year low of Rs 78.05, down 12 per cent, on the BSE on Monday, as oil plunged over 20 per cent today after top exporter Saudi Arabia launched a price war in response to a failure by leading producers to strike a deal to support energy markets. ONGC has seen its steepest price correction with the stock price plunging 37 per cent in the last two months as against a 13 per cent fall in the S&P BSE Sensex. 

why the fall in crude oil prices may not be good news for India

The 30 per cent drop in Brent prices on Monday may not be good news for the economy, said analysts at Morgan Stanley. They believe the gains will remain capped due to the overall weakness in the economy given the coronavirus health scare.

The decline in oil prices, they believe, will negatively impact the capex outlook for oil related sectors as well as oil producing countries. That apart, credit markets in the US and in emerging market (EM) will likely react negatively, leading to a further tightening of finances.

Gold jumps past $1,700 level for first time in seven years on virus fears

Gold prices jumped past the $1,700 per ounce level for the first time since late 2012 on Monday, as a widening coronavirus outbreak and a plunge in crude oil hammered equities and sent investors scurrying for safe havens. But fall back to $1,676.55 amid talks of some investors having to sell to raise cash to cover margin calls in stocks.