Closing bell: A day after suffering their biggest single-day collapse benchmarks Sensex and Nifty on Tuesday staged a sharp recovery in line with global markets as investors held out hopes that measures by governments across the world will offset the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The BSE gauge Sensex closed 692.79 points or 2.67 per cent higher at 26,674.03, after a highly volatile trading session. The index swung between a high of 27,462.87 and a low of 25,638.90 during the day.

Likewise, the NSE barometer Nifty settled 190.80 points, or 2.51 per cent, up at 7,801.05.

Both Sensex and Nifty had suffered their worst ever single-session drop in history on Monday. Indices had closed with up to 13 per cent plunge.

On Tuesday, Indian equities followed an improved investor sentiment in Asia after the Federal Reserve announced a limitless bond-buying programme to support the US economy.

Top gainers in the Sensex pack included Infosys, Bajaj Finance, HUL, Maruti, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries; while M&M, IndusInd Bank, ITC, PowerGrid and L&T were among the losers.

Sectorally, BSE IT, teck, energy, FMCG, auto, bankex, finance and metal indices advanced up to 6.95 per cent.

While realty, capital goods and basic materials indices ended up to 2.01 per cent lower.

In the broader market, BSE midcap and smallcap indices rose up to 1.56 per cent.

“Market seemed to breathe a sigh of relief today after the crash yesterday, in sync with the global markets. In addition to the huge relief package by the US Fed yesterday, there were also expectations of a fiscal package by the government, Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said.

The market came off its highs after no significant announcements by the finance minister and the fact that the economic package was still in development, he said, adding that European and US manufacturing activity data due later, which may indicate the impact of Covid-19 on economies, could influence markets tomorrow.

With the coronavirus lockdown hitting the Indian industry hard and causing job losses, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said an economic package to help tide over the crisis would be announced very soon.

Sitharaman told reporters an announcement on the package would be made sooner than later.

On volatility in stocks, she said regulators and her ministry are monitoring developments and volatility in markets.

According to experts, a major package from the government of India and the Reserve Bank is expected shortly, and the market is likely to remain hugely volatile with a rising possibility of V-shaped recovery occasionally.

The US Fed is now leading from the front with its historic package which includes the open-ended purchase of securities, direct loans to companies, purchase of corporate bonds, lending against student loans and credit card loans, they said.

The Federal Reserve on Monday announced it would buy unlimited amounts of US Treasury debt -- essentially printing money for the economy -- as well as new steps to lend directly to small- and medium-sized companies that have been among the hardest-hit as economic activity dries up.

Other central banks are also expected to follow suit with bold measures to ease the severely strained credit and financial markets, experts noted.

Traders said extreme lockdown measures taken by the government of India and authorities across the world still weigh on global investor sentiment.

Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul rallied up to 8 per cent. Exchanges in Europe too rallied up to 6 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee appreciated against the US dollar to trade 26 paise higher at 75.94.

Global crude benchmark, Brent crude futures rose 5.22 per cent to USD 28.44 per barrel.

Coronavirus cases in India crossed 500, and one more death from the infection reported taking the toll to ten, as the Centre on Tuesday asked the states and union territories to clamp curfew wherever necessary in the wake of people defying lockdown orders in several parts of the country.

The number of global Covid-19 infections has shot past 3,80,000. Worldwide fatalities topped 16,500.

Finance ministry and regulators monitoring developments, volatility in stock markets: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said regulators and her ministry are monitoring developments and volatility in stock markets.

She said the developments on stock markets are monitored thrice a day.

The government is working on an economic package to deal with the hardships caused by the lockdown to control the coronavirus crisis and the same will be announced soon, she said adding different sub-groups have held sectoral discussions.

Why the SpiceJet stock has crashed more than IndiGo in the coronavirus storm?

On March 9, when crude oil (Brent) crashed from $50 a barrel to $35 a barrel, aggravating the pain in many Indian stocks, the two listed airline stocks held out – IndiGo Airlines gained 3 per cent that day and SpiceJet closed flat. This was based on the hope that reduction in fuel costs would offset, to some extent, the hit from the fall in air travel demand due to the spread of coronavirus. Fuel, after all, is the largest expense for Indian carriers, accounting for about 40 per cent of their costs. But the relief was short-lived. Read more here

Indian rupee to average at 77 per US dollar in 2020, 80 in 2021: Fitch Solutions

Fitch Solutions on Tuesday revised down its forecast for the Indian rupee, saying the currency will average 77 per US dollar in 2020 and 80 in 2021 amid ongoing global risk-off sentiment and likely steep monetary easing.

It saw real GDP growth at 5.4 per cent in 2020-21 fiscal that starts in April and 5.8 per cent in the following financial year.

“We at Fitch Solutions maintain our view for the Indian rupee to persist on a long-term weakening trajectory against the US dollar,” it said in a note.

Nifty Call: Buy with stop-loss at 7,775

The benchmark indices are trading in the green today, as major indices across Asia have given positive cues. The Nifty spot and the Sensex spot indices have gone up by little over 2 per cent each. Major Asian indices like the Nikkei, the Shanghai composite and the Hang Seng are trading higher by 7 per cent, 2 per cent and 4.6 per cent respectively.

Coronavirus: GHCL shuts yarn operations in Tamil Nadu

GHCL Ltd on Tuesday announced temporary closure of its yarn divisions at Paravai and Manaparai, in Tamil Nadu till March 31, to protect its employees from the coronavirus pandemic.

“The management of GHCL has decided to temporarily closed down its yarn operation based in Paravai and Manaparai, Tamil Nadu from March 24 till March 31,2020,” GHCL said in a regulatory filing.

Coronavirus impact: Mahindra CIE temporarily suspends production

Auto component firm Mahindra CIE Automotive has suspended production activities in all plants across the country, except in Karnataka, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The company and its subsidiaries, including Aurangabad Electricals Ltd, have suspended operations at all the manufacturing units in India, except in Karnataka, from March 23 till the government restrictions are removed, Mahindra CIE Automotive said in a regulatory filing.

SEC concludes probe in whistleblower case; no further action expected: Infosys

Infosys on Tuesday said the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has concluded the investigation in the whistleblower allegations made last year, and that it does not anticipate any further action by the regulator.

In October last year, Infosys had informed stock exchanges of having received anonymous whistleblower complaints alleging certain unethical practices by the top management. It then started a probe into the matter and roped in external investigators.

US market regulator SEC had also initiated a probe into the matter.

Covid-19: Cement makers shut down factories across India

Leading cement makers have announced production shutdowns in factories across the country as Central and State governments announce lockdown and stringent measures to prevent mass gatherings in the fight against Covid-19.

ACC has temporarily suspended its operations at various locations till March 31, 2020. The company is monitoring the situation closely and will take a call on the resumption of operations based on further directives from the Government, it said.

Further, the company has constituted Business Resilience Teams to respond to the spread of Covid-19. It has also given ‘work from home’ option to its employees until March 31.

Aviation stocks tumble up to 10% as govt decides to suspend all domestic operations from March 25

Aviation stocks on Tuesday dropped up to 10 per cent after the announcement of suspension of all domestic operations of Indian airlines from March 25 amid Covid-19 pandemic.

Shares of IndiGo’s parent InterGlobe Aviation tanked 9.99 per cent to Rs 765.05 — their one-year low on the BSE.

SpiceJet also dropped 4.92 per cent to Rs 31.85 - its 52-week low as well as lower circuit.

Airlines will suspend all domestic operations from March 25 amid the outbreak of coronavirus (Covid-19), the Aviation Ministry announced on Monday.

The country has already suspended international flights.

The airline industry is one of the worst hit by the outbreak. The country’s largest carrier IndiGo has already announced pay cuts.

Airfares zoom as flights cease to operate from tonight

Ahead of suspension of domestic flights in India to curtail the spread of the coronavirus infection, the airfares have increased by up to 30 per cent per cent, revealed a two-week data by travel website, Ixigo.

Airfares for a one-way Chennai-Mumbai flight were affected the most.

The total cases of coronavirus have crossed over three lakh globally, and in India, the number of positive cases have reached 415.

Retail investors lose around ₹3 lakh crore in market crash

Retail investors are bearing the brunt of the market correction. Since the beginning of the year, retail investors in stocks of Nifty 500 have lost almost ₹3 lakh crore. The value of their holding stands at ₹8.85 lakh crore now. Read more here

Domino's suspends dine-in facilty, delivery available

Jubilant FoodWorks Ltd has decided to suspend dine-in facility across all its Domino's Pizza restaurants but will keep delivery and take-away facilities operational, in view of the Covid-19 outbreak.

In a BSE filing last night, the company said, “In view of the emergent situation due to coronavirus , to support several initiatives taken by the Central and State Government authorities to control potential transmission of Covid-19 and to maintain social distancing, dine-in facility across all Domino’s Pizza restaurants stands suspended."

Gold surges: Gold surged in the wake of the Fed's promise of yet more cheap money, and was last up 1.7% at $1,578.45 per ounce having rallied from a low of $1,484.65 on Monday

HUL gains over 6%

The shares of FMCG major Hindustan Unilever rose above 6 per cent on Tuesday. The scrip is currently trading 6.52 per cent higher at Rs 1,991 and tops the Nifty gainers list. Earlier, the company had signed an agreement with Glenmark Pharmaceuticals to acquire its intimate hygiene brand 'VWash'.

Crude oil: Oil prices bounced after recent savage losses, with U.S. crude up $1.09 at $24.45 barrel. Brent crude firmed 97 cents to $28.00.

Mangalam Drugs gearing up for Covid-19 medicine

Shares of Mangalam Drugs and Organics, engaged in the business of manufacturing of various active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for anti-malaria, anti-retrovirals, including hydroxrychloroquine sulphate (HCQS) and chloroquine phosphate (CQP) APIs, may remain in focus.

The company is gearing up production of HCQS and CQP APIs to meet the demand in case these are approved for treatment of patients affected by the novel coronavirus by regulatory authorities, it said in a statement.

L&T MF’s new index fund offer opens today

Notwithstanding the market turmoil due to the Covid-19 scare, L&T Investment Management has announced the launch of two new fund offers ― L&T Nifty 50 Index Fund and L&T Nifty Next 50 Index Fund.

The NFO is scheduled to open on March 24 and close on March 31.

Markets update: Equity benchmark Sensex recovered over 1,400 points in opening session on Tuesday tracking gains in Asian peers after US Federal Reserve announced limitless bond-buying programme to support the US economy.

Investor sentiment in Asia improved in anticipation of a revival in demand from the economic giant, traders said.

After rallying 1,481.63 points, the BSE barometer gave up gains to trade 443.27 55 points or 0.21 per cent lower at 25,965.

Similarly, the NSE Nifty was trading 11 points lower, or 0.15 per cent, up at 7,598.

Top losers in the Nifty pack included IndusInd Bank, HeroMotoCorp, BPCL, Bharti Infratel and Bajaj Finserve, while Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, Adani Ports, Tech Mahindra, and Cipla were the top gainers.

FII activities: Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market, as they sold equity shares worth Rs 2,989.29 crore on Monday, according to provisional exchange data.

What to watch: Kalpataru Sterlite Tech in focus on buyback

The respective boards of Sterlite Technologies and Kalpataru Power Transmission will meet on Tuesday (March 24) to consider buyback proposals.

Shareholders of these firms will closely monitor the buyback size, number of shares to be bought back and issue price. Besides, if the offer is through the tender route, record date will also be a crucial element. Also, whether promoters will participate in the buyback or not will be another important factor to be closely watched.

Rupee opening: The Indian rupee opened higher by 22 paise at 76.07 versus dollar on Tuesday against the previous close of 76.29.

What to watch: Will HUL deal of VWash boost Glenmark?

Hindustan Unilever on Monday said it has entered into an agreement to acquire intimate hygiene brand VWash from Glenmark Pharmaceuticals. Without disclosing the cost of acquisition, HUL said the deal would include an upfront cash payment and a deferred consideration over the next three years. The deal, expected to be completed in a few months, includes the acquisition of IPR including trademarks, design and know-how related to the VWash brand.

Opening bell: The benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, opened Tuesday in the green. The Sensex was quoted at 27408.13, up 1,426 points or 5.49 per cent. The Nifty was up 417 points or 5.48 per cent at 8,027.

About 632 shares have advanced, 195 shares declined, and 42 shares are unchanged.

All the sectoral indices are trading in the green, leasd by Nifty IT.

The Trends in SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the index with a gain of over 400 points.

Day Trading Guide for March 24, 2020

₹770 • HDFC Bank

₹526 • Infosys

₹154 • ITC

₹60 • ONGC

₹883 • Reliance Ind.

₹181 • SBI

₹1662 • TCS

7581 • Nifty 50 Futures

S1, S2 : Support 1 & 2; R1, R2: Resistance 1 & 2.

Today's Pick - Radico Khaitan (₹243.3): Sell

Investors with a short-term perspective can sell the stock of Radico Khaitan at current levels. The stock tumbled 20 per cent decisively breaking below a key long-term support level at ₹265 on Monday. This fall has strengthened the medium-term downtrend that has been in place since recording a 52-week high of ₹439 in late February this year.

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