Stock Market Today Latest Updates: Market gives up morning rally, Sensex ends below 30,000-mark; TCS, Titan among major losers

Grofers to hire 5,000 people over 2 weeks to ramp up capacity

Online grocery platform Grofers is looking at hiring 5,000 employees to ramp up its capacity to meet the spike in orders amid the nationwide lockdown.

The company has also partnered with resident welfare associations (RWAs) of over 100 societies across metros to make essentials available to a larger number of people amid the 21-day lockdown imposed to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Outlining the steps taken by the company over the last three weeks, its co-founder and CEO Albinder Dhindsa said the Grofers app is seeing over 1.5 million people trying to order daily.

“Everyday our app is seeing over 1.5 million people trying to order. Given the constraints on how many people we can cater to, we are only able to serve 1 out of 8 customers today…(we) are working on adding more capacity to make this work for more people,” he said in the company blog dated 7 April.

Shake-out in electric two, three-wheeler segment expected in short term

The coronavirus pandemic and the ongoing lockdown will lead to shake-out in electric two and three-wheeler industry with smaller players unable to survive the “extreme short term” folding up, according to Society of Electric Vehicle Manufacturers (SMEV).

However, in the long run there is a silver lining as electric vehicles will find more acceptance with people now realising how air quality and environment has improved during the stay-at-home period with internal combustion engines staying off the roads, SMEV Director General Sohinder Gill told PTI.

“It is a day-to-day operation these days and monitoring being done everyday basis because in the network across India all shutters are down, which means for the last 25 days the retail is zero,” he said when asked about the situation on the ground at present.

Apart from the uncertainty of when the lockdown will be lifted, he said it is also unclear if the customers will really come back to showrooms as discretionary spends will always be secondary.

Fuel demand likely to fall 40% in April: Report

The fuel demand, which witnessed a fall by around 20 percent in March amid the lockdown, likely to decline further to 40 percent in April, impacting pricing and increasing borrowing cost for oil marketing companies, according to a report.

The three-week national lockdown ending 14 April has seen individuals remaining indoors, shops and businesses shut, and vehicular movement, including the Railways, airlines, trucks and private vehicles, remaining off the roads.

According to a report by India Ratings, the overall demand for fuel has come down by around 20 per cent, while capacity utilization levels have fallen to 50 percent in March.

Typically, refining operations under 40 percent capacity utilisation become unviable due to higher fixed operating expenses. However, capacity utilisation has remained high for OMCs whose sales to own production ratio is significantly high, as they lowered external purchases while ensuring their refineries run at full utilisation, the report said.

Extend lockdown period to contain Covid-19: CAIT

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has urged the Centre to extend the lockdown period to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Accordingly, CAIT said that it made this recommendation based on a survey conducted with senior trade leaders of all States.

“Although the traders will be facing several trading, economic and financial challenges, yet in the interest of the Country, the traders are well prepared to extend best services to the nation,” the confederation said in a statement.

Snowman Logistics says warehouses fully operational

Snowman Logistics on Wednesday said all its warehouses are fully operational amid the nationwide lockdown to contain the coronavirus outbreak.     

“The business of Snowman Logistics Ltd (Snowman) is considered under the ‘essential services’ category as per the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), and accordingly all the warehouses of the Company are functional and fully operational,” the company said in a filing to BSE. 

The company remains committed to providing support for the storage and distribution of essential goods, especially food and pharmaceutical products, it added.

The business of the company has not been adversely affected and demand for storage has increased, the filing said. This increase has come in from various segments such as seafood, meat, poultry, butter and healthcare products.

RIL’s net debt to fall despite struggling energy, retail demand

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd’s net debt will fall even if energy and retail demand struggles for six months and the planned asset sales are delayed, analysts said.

Also, RIL can re-prioritise investment, potentially slowing capex by up to a third. Beyond COVID-19, RIL emerges stronger as competitors face high debt challenges and slow investments, Morgan Stanley said in a research report.

With the outbreak of coronavirus impacting economies globally, RIL faces multiple challenges — oil prices have declined along with a fall in global oil product demand as a result of the lockdown across India and multiple geographies, potential slowdown in fashion/electronics demand for its retail segment, slower monetisation of telecom investments, and still relatively high debt post the investment cycle.

Consequently, RIL’s share price has dropped 21 percent year-to-date, but still out-performed the market by 7 percentage points.

Flight curbs will be lifted once coronavirus in control: Hardeep Singh Puri

India will remove its suspension of domestic and international commercial passenger flights once it is confident that the spread of coronavirus has come under control, sad Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday.

“My heart goes out to people who are facing problems due to restrictions put in place on domestic & international flights, pursuant to the situation arising out of the timely announcement of a nationwide lockdown,” the minister said on Twitter. 

India has imposed a 21-day lockdown from March 25 to curb the coronavirus pandemic. Consequently, all domestic and international commercial passenger flights have been suspended for this time period.

However, cargo flights, offshore helicopter operations, medical evacuation flights and special flights permitted by Indian aviation regulator DGCA are permitted to operate during this lockdown.

Hospitality firms launch slew of initiatives to help in times of COVID-19

Leading hospitality firms ITC Hotels, Radisson Hotel Group and Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels are taking a slew of initiatives to serve healthcare providers and community at large in times of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

While in New Delhi, ITC Maurya and Sheraton have been providing over 1,500 meals daily for distribution to migrant workers; in Bengaluru, ITC Gardenia is lending its support with 1,000 food packets daily for 15 days (15,000 meals) to Municipal Corporation, ITC Hotels said.

In Mumbai, ITC Grand Central has made arrangements to deliver meals to doctors in MG Hospital. Food has also been catered to doctors at the Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai by ITC Grand Central, it added.

In Lucknow, Fortune Hotel is also lending assistance through the provision of more than 1,000 meals per day. This initiative will be progressively rolled out in other metros including Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad, ITC Hotels said.

Adani Gas slashes CNG, domestic PNG prices with effect from 9 April 

#JustIn | Adani Gas reduces prices of CNG & Domestic PNG with effect from April 9 pic.twitter.com/mAQVE2TsIz

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Market trims losses, Nifty holds 8,700-mark 

The benchmark indices recovered from the losses in the afternoon session as the Sensex was trading 56.36 points or 0.19 percent lower at 30,010.85 while Nifty was down 5.05 points or 0.06 percent at 8,787.15 at around 2.45 pm.

Titan and TCS were the top losers in the the Sensex pack.

Rupee settles 70 paise lower at 76.34 against US dollar

The rupee settled 70 paise lower at 76.34 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday amid rise in coronavirus cases in the country and weak domestic equities.
 

Forex traders said rising brent prices and firm US dollar index also weighed on the local unit.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 75.83, then lost further ground and finally settled for the day at 76.34, registering a fall of 70 paise over its previous close.

On Tuesday, the rupee had settled at 75.64 against the US dollar.

Germany tightens rules on foreign takeovers

Germany’s government agreed on Wednesday to tighten rules to protect domestic firms from unwanted takeovers by investors from non-European Union countries, two government sources said.

The move comes at a time when Europe’s biggest economy, and the EU as a whole, is reconsidering relations with China in the face of increased investment in critical sectors by Chinese state-owned enterprises.

In future, transactions which have implications for German security should be provisionally put on hold pending a final decision.

Gold rises on coronavirus worries, firm dollar limits gains

Gold prices gained in volatile trade on Wednesday amid weakening appetite for risk as rising deaths dampened hopes for a swift containment of the novel coronavirus.

Spot gold ticked up 0.2 percent to $1,651.51 per ounce, after climbing to its highest since 10 March on Tuesday at $1,671.40. US gold futures rose 0.4 percent to $1,689.80.

Honda back to work in China’s Wuhan 

Temperature checkpoints and posters telling workers to keep more than a metre apart at Japanese automaker Honda Motor Co’s reopened plant in the Chinese city of Wuhan show how the coronavirus has created a new normal on the factory floor.

The plant, a Honda joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Group was shut in late January when authorities ordered a lockdown in Wuhan in a bid to snuff out the coronavirus, which emerged there late last year.

It reopened on March 11 to resume operations in stages and is now back to pre-virus production levels, Li Shiquan, assistant director of the joint venture’s No. 2 final assembly plant, told reporters on Wednesday.

Returning workers were asked to report where they had been since the epidemic started and temperature checkpoints were set up, Li said.

Thermal power PLF could fall below 55% level in FY21

Thermal power plant load factor or capacity utilisation could fall below the ideal 55 percent level in the current fiscal due to the impact of COVID-19, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) said in a report.

Ind-Ra will assess the impact of COVID-19 on the power sector, including generating and distribution companies, in two series. The first in the series is the impact on generators (gencos).

The rating agency estimates the pandemic could lead to the thermal plant load factor (PLF) falling below 55 percent for 2020-21, closer to the technical minimum standards, on account of a gradual ramp-up in industrial load and the already muted electricity demand witnessed in the pre-COVID scenario.

According to the report, electricity demand during April-February period of the last fiscal grew by a mere 2.1 percent  year-on-year, while the loss of industrial load during the latter half of March 2020 has resulted in further moderation in electricity demand growth.

 India’s coal import drops over 27% to 16 MT in March

India’s coal import in March stood at 15.74 million tonnes (MT), down 27.5 percent over last year, due to restrictions imposed at various ports in the wake of coronavirus outbreak in the country.

The country had imported 21.72 MT of coal in March last year, according to a provisional compilation by mjunction services based on monitoring of vessels’ positions and data received from shipping companies.

However, the country’s coal import registered an increase of 3.2 percent to 242.97 MT in 2019-20.

“On a progressive basis, total coal and coke imports during 2019-20 (April 2019-March 2020) stood at 242.97 MT (provisional), about 3.24 per cent higher than 235.35 MT imported during the previous fiscal (April 2018-March 2019),” it said.

ClearTax launches ‘Power of 21’, e-learning course on taxes

Cleartax, a Fintech Saas company, has launched a new e-learning course ‘Power of 21’. The course is designed to help CAs, SMEs, and tax professionals dive into the basics of GST and direct taxes and brush up their tax compliance skills.

The programme is scheduled to run from 1-21 April with 21 live webinars scheduled every day, the company said.

These webinars will cover various topics such as basics of GST, ITC, exemptions, reverse charge, and the measures taken by the government to help businesses overcome the impact of lockdown due to COVID-19. It will also empower businesses in planning their compliance during the lockdown period.

The webinars will also cover case studies on the impact of GST across different business sectors. One can use this link to register for the Power of 21 programme.

Hyundai integrates entire sales network with online sales platform

Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) on Wednesday said it has integrated its entire sales network of over 500 dealerships across the country with its recently introduced online sales platform.

The company’s online sales platform — Click to Buy — offers an end-to-end retail experience to its customers.

Hyundai had launched a pilot phase of the initiative with few dealers of Delhi-NCR in January 2020.

All Hyundai models including the new Creta and Verna are available on the Click to Buy website that acts as an additional sales channel for Hyundai dealerships, HMIL said in a statement.

Essar Ports cargo handling jumps over 23% to 49.22 MT in 2019-20

Essar Ports on Wednesday said its cargo handling grew over 23 per cent to 49.22 million tonnes (MT) in 2019-20.

Essar Ports is one of the country’s largest private sector port and terminal developers and operators and claims to have invested Rs 11,000 crore in developing world-class terminals in three states.

“Essar Ports’ business, which operates four terminals on the east and west coasts of India, has registered a 23.5 per cent growth in cargo volumes in FY 2019-20, with a throughput of 49.22 million tonne (MT),” the company said in a statement.

I-T Department cautions against breach in e-filing accounts

The Income-Tax Department has asked taxpayers to guard against possible breach of their personal e-filing account and report such an instance to the police cyber security wing.

“If you think your e-filing account many have been compromised or accessed in an unauthorised manner, then you may be a victim of cybercrime,” the department said in an advisory.

“Please report the incident to the concerned police or cyber cell authorities as a first step,” it said.

The e-filing account of an individual or entity is accessed by logging on to the web portal of the department — https://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in.

A senior official said the advisory has been issued in the wake of an increased vulnerability and attacks on online systems as the country and the world battle the COVID-19 pandemic and more online systems are being used due to a major scaling down of human interface.

Market in red as Sensex falls over 250 points 

The benchmark indices were trading in the red as the Sensex fell 278.24 points or 0.93 percent to 29,788.97 while Nifty was down 8,711.10 points or 81.10 percent at 8,711.10 at around 2 pm.

TCS, Titan and IndusInd Bank were the top losers in the Sensex pack losing over 3 percent.

Border jams delay supply of toilet paper’s only ingredient

As several European borders limit travel to stop the spread of COVID-19, two of the world’s biggest pulp makers say transportation logjams are delaying shipments of the raw material – the only ingredient in the toilet paper that people are hoarding to weather quarantines.

In March, countries including Norway, Germany and Spain shut their borders to non-essential travel. Freight can still pass through, but enforcing the new rules holds up deliveries to cargo trains and vessels bound for warehouses and factories in North America and China.

As a result, Finland’s Metsä Fibre and Sweden’s Södra Cell International told Reuters that truckloads of pulp going through Europe are getting caught in traffic jams for hours, or even a couple of days.

Reliance General Insurance launches COVID-19 protection cover

Non-life insurer Reliance General Insurance on Wednesday launched a COVID-19 protection insurance scheme, which offers 100 per cent of the sum-insured in lump sum on positive diagnosis of coronavirus.

In case a person is quarantined, the plan offers 50 percent of the sum-insured during that period.

The plan has a policy period of one year and the waiting period is for 15 days before one can claim against the policy, according to a statement by the company.

“We have designed this product to reduce the financial implications this pandemic can bring to an individual, by offering them a lump sum policy, irrespective of the treatment cost,” the company’’s Executive Director and CEO Rakesh Jain said.

The plan will cover anyone aged between 3 months and 60 years, for a sum-insured option from Rs 25,000 to Rs 2 lakh.

German economy likely contracted by record 9.8% in second-quarter: Report 

Europe’s largest economy probably shrank by 9.8 percent in the second quarter, its biggest decline since records began in 1970 and more than double the decline seen during the global financial crisis in 2009, Germany’s leading institutes said on Wednesday.

The top economic research institutes said that was due to the lockdown measures introduced to help slow the spread of the coroanvirus. They said the economy probably shrank by 1.9 percent between January and March.

As Reuters previously reported from sources, they said the German economy is likely to shrink by 4.2 percent this year and grow by 5.8 percent next year.

Rupee near record low against dollar

#Rupee approaches record low against the US dollar pic.twitter.com/FzY9LSsH2X

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Market surges in early session on global cues

Tracking global cues, the market surged in the early session amid indications that a nation-wide lockdown could be extended, said Sundar Sanmukhani, head of fundamental research desk, Choice Broking.

“Gains in auto, FMCG, pharma and banking stocks led to the upmove. Market paired some early gains and were trading up with 0.8 percent gain as losses in Index heavyweight stock like TCS and RIL dragged the market  lower,” he said.

Sectoroally all indices were trading in green with pharma being top gainer.Corona virus impact will continue to keep market volatile going ahead, Sanmukhani added.

Benchmark indices remain volatile, Nifty holds 8,800-mark

The benchmark indices remained volatile in the afternoon session and was trading in the green after slipping into the red zone for some time. 

Sensex rose 91.64 points or 0.30 percent to 30,158.85 while Nifty was up 33.35 points or 0.38 percent at 8,825.55 at around 1.20 pm.

French economy shrinks 6% in first-quarter 

 France’s economy likely contracted 6 percent in the first quarter from the previous three months as a nationwide lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak shut down vast swathes of the economy, the central bank estimated on Wednesday.

That would be the biggest contraction on a quarterly basis since World War II, surpassing the previous record of -5.3 percent in the second quarter of 1968 when France was gripped by civil unrest, mass student protests and general strikes.

France has been subject to stay-at-home orders since 17 March that officially end on 15 April, although the government has warned they could very well be extended if judged prudent.

A typical week of confinement in March saw economic activity reduced by nearly a third, the central bank said in an analysis of the economic fallout from the outbreak.

IndusInd Bank gives up gains

#CNBCTV18Market | IndusInd Bank gives up gains as it slips more than 16% from the high point of the day pic.twitter.com/t5k0f57h3M

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Britain eases rules to speed up company capital raising

Britain’s markets watchdog set out temporary measures on Wednesday to help companies raise cash quickly to get through the epidemic that has shuttered much of the economy.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it was likely that many companies will turn to capital markets to raise money to support the recovery to come.

Under Britain’s lockdown, no more than two people can meet, making it far harder to obtain shareholder approval for a transaction under existing rules.

“In addition, the notice period for general meetings adds to transaction timetables and might also jeopardise an issuer’s ability to complete critical fundraising transactions quickly,” the FCA said.

Market slips into red Sensex falls 24 points, Nifty below 8,800-mark 

Market gave up the morning gains and slipped into the red in the afternoon trade. 

Sensex fell 23.53 points or 0.08 percent to 30,043.68 while the broader Nifty was down 3.85 points or 0.04 percent at 8,788.35 at around 12.50 am.

Govt likely to pay Rs 20,000 cr pending GST compensation to states: Report

In a major relief in the wake of 21-day lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak, the Centre is expected to pay Rs 20,000 crore in pending Goods and Service Tax (GST) compensation to states soon, said a news report.

The financial aid is from the Consolidated Fund of India , not from the compensation cess, said a report in Business Standard. 

Apart from this, the finance ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) are reportedly planning another stimulus package and it may be announced soon, the report said.

“The revenue department has been authorised to clear Rs 20,000 crore in GST compensation dues to states,” a top government official was quoted as saying in the report.

Pandemic may take a toll on domestic steel players’ expansion plans: Experts

The outbreak and spread of the COVID-19 pandemic may adversely impact the expansion plans of domestic steel makers, according to experts.

Indian players had been working on expansion plans in line with the government’s ambitious target of scaling up the total steel making capacity to 300 million tonne per annum (MTPA) by 2030.

Many steel makers in India have scaled down their production by up to 50 per cent amid the nationwide lockdown in the wake of the pandemic.

Until now several ratings agencies have been pointing out that the spread of coronavirus has adversely affected the steel markets across the world including India in-terms of prices, profit margins, affecting raw material supply chain, demand and building up of inventories.

Britain’s Tesco says coronavirus costs may reach $1.1 billion

Britain’s biggest retailer Tesco expects to take a hit of up to 925 million pounds ($1.1 billion) from the costs of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and warned it was unable to give a profit forecast for this financial year.

However, the supermarket group said on Wednesday that if customer behaviour returned to normal by August, it was likely the extra expenses – mainly related to staff and operations costs – would be offset by higher sales and relief from a business tax introduced by the government to help companies.

“There are significant extra costs in feeding the nation at the moment but … Tesco is a business that rises to a challenge and this will be no different,” CEO David Lewis said, as the company reported a 14% rise in underlying operating profit for the year ended Feb. 29, broadly in line with expectations.

Online tutoring platform Vedantu launches 21-day learning challenge

Vedantu, online tutoring platform, has launched its ‘21-day learning challenge’ to keep people motivated and engaged.

They have collaborated with different social media influencers from various walks of life like Hritik Roshan, Jannat Zubair, and Sania Mirza to name a few. 

Anybody can take up this challenge where a person picks up a skill and learns it over the course of 21 days. The person can post the same( video or picture) showcasing their new talent on different social media platforms with the hashtag #Vedantu 21 Day Learning Challenge.

Sensex up 226 points, Nifty up 8,800-mark in afternoon trade

Market continued to shed the morning rally as Sensex was trading 225.67 points or 0.75 percent 30,292.88 while Nifty was up 67.05 points or 0.76 percent at 8,859.25 at around 12.25 am.

Adani Green Energy shares jump 5% after Total SA deal

Shares of Adani Green Energy gained 5 per cent on Wednesday after Total SA said it has invested Rs 3,707 crore in a solar energy joint venture with the domestic firm.

The scrip jumped 4.90 percent to Rs 166.80 on the BSE. On the NSE, it gained 4.97 percent to Rs 166.85.

Total SA on Tuesday said it has invested Rs 3,707 crore to set up 50:50 joint venture with Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) through its step-down subsidiary.

The closing of the transaction in the current environment reinforces the strength of the relationship between the partners and further underscores robust climate commitment of both partners, it stated.

CRISIL postpones AGM due later this month

Credit rating firm Crisil on Wednesday said it has postponed its annual general meeting, which was scheduled for later this month, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The company’s 33rd annual general meeting (AGM) was to be held on 21 April.

“The prevailing lockdown and restrictions on mass congregations in Mumbai, which commenced on March 21, 2020 in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, constrained the company from fully completing the dispatch of physical copies of the annual report to our shareholders,” CRISIL said in a regulatory filing.

It also said the current circumstances do not allow a smooth and safe conduct of the AGM and in the safety of all stakeholders, in keeping with government advisories on COVID-19, the board of directors has decided to postpone the AGM.

Rupee slips below 76 against dollar

#CNBCTV18Market | #Rupee slips to day's low, trading past 76/$

Note: Refer the chart as per Dollar pic.twitter.com/Ipt0chcI0J

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

L&T wins ’large’ contract from Indian Oil

Engineering and construction giant Larsen & Toubro on Wednesday said it has won a ’large’ contract from the Indian Oil Corporation for capacity expansion of IOC’s Barauni Refinery, in Bihar.

The project won by company arm L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering involves engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning for 9 million tonne per annum (MTPA) Atmospheric & Vacuum Distillation Unit.

Though the company did not specify the exact amount of the contract, as per its specification it ranges between Rs 2,500 crore and Rs 5,000 crore.

“The EPCC contract is for setting up a new 9 MTPA Atmospheric & Vacuum Distillation Unit (AVU) and allied facilities (EPCC-1 Package) for Barauni Refinery Capacity Expansion Project at IOCL’s Barauni Refinery, Bihar. The capacity of Barauni Refinery is being augmented from current installed capacity of 6 MTPA to 9 MTPA,” the company said in a statement.

IIITM-K creates supply-chain, inventory data dashboard for govt

The Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management-Kerala has developed an online Supply Chain and Inventory Management Information Dashboard for the state government to monitor the stock,demand and supply of essential commodities during COVID-19 lockdown.

The system, developed as part of the social responsibility initiative of IIITM-K, maps major wholesale and retail traders dealing in essential commodities across all districts, and will capture and analyse their daily stock position and demand, a press release said.

More than 29 mn hydroxychloroquine doses have come from India: Donald Trump

A sizeable chunk of the 29 million doses of hydroxychloroquine bought by the US to combat the coronavirus pandemic is from India, President Donald Trump has said as he acknowledged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was “great” when he sought his help to allow the sale of the anti-malaria drug to treat the growing number of COVID-19 patients in America.

Trump and Prime Minister Modi spoke over the phone last week. During the call, Trump requested Modi to lift the hold on the American order of hydroxychloroquine, of which India is the major producer.

“I bought millions of doses (of hydroxychloroquine). More than 29 million. I spoke to Prime Minister Modi, a lot of it (hydroxychloroquine) comes out of India. I asked him if he would release it? He was Great. He was really good,” Trump told Sean Hannity of the Fox News on Monday night.

“You know they put a stop because they wanted it for India,” Trump said responding to a question on the usage of hydroxychloroquine.

Corporates appeal to unite CSR efforts to protect vulnerable

A section of India Inc on Tuesday appealed all corporate social responsibility initiatives to unite and focus efforts towards protecting the vulnerable sections of the society from the COVID-19 pandemic.

IT services major Wipro’s chairman Rishad Premji, Edelweiss Foundation’s — the CSR arm of financial services major — Vidya Shah and Rohini Nilekani of Arghyam have come together and joined hands with global non-profit Oxfam in making the appeal.

Th appealed to CSR foundations, funding and philanthropic organisations to focus efforts in protecting the elderly, the sick, the physically challenged, the poor and informal sector, migrant workers, a statement said.

Market gives up early gains as Sensex slips below 31,000-level

Market gave up the morning gains sharply as Sensex was trading 223.85 points or 0.74 percent higher at 30,291.06 while Nifty was up 86.20 points or 0.98 percent at 8,878.40 at around 11.45 am.

Jharkhand’s ‘Sakhi Mandals’ using medicinal plants to make hand sanitisers

‘Sakhi Mandal’ (self-help group) in Jharkhand’s Khunti district is using medicinal plants along with other ingredients to prepare hand sanitizer in their
fight against COVID-19 pandemic, a government official said.

Lemon grass or basil oil is also being added to the hand sanitiser by the ‘Sakhi Mandal’ as these are medicinal plant and can increase the effectiveness of the sanitizer, the official said.

A total of 225 litres of hand sanitizer have been manufactured in Khunti by the ‘Sakhi Mandal’ and the quantity would be increased to 1,000 litres in the next two days, he said.

The hand sanitisers have been packaged in 100 ml, 250 ml and 500 ml bottles.

Dollar firms as virus worries return

The dollar found a footing on Wednesday as investors returned to safe-havens, reversing some risk currency gains made on hopes the coronavirus crisis in Europe and New York was slowing.

The greenback rose on most majors, a day after suffering its worst drop against a basket of currencies in nearly two weeks.

It was not enough to recoup the ground given in recent days, but came after a sour end to trade on Wall Street on Tuesday and as a two-day rally in Asia’s equity markets ran out of puff.

The largest gains came against the risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars, which each fell about 0.4 percent.

Wobbly US fiscal response could deepen coronavirus recession

The US government’s massive effort to nurse the economy through the coronavirus crisis was billed as a send-money-and-don’t-sweat-the-details flood of cash to people and businesses in a $22 trillion system that has ground to a halt. So far, the checks are not in the mail.

From technological glitches to confusion over the fine points of policy, the delays are mounting. The federal government’s muddled response risks deepening and lengthening a recession already historic for the speed of its onset.

States are struggling to process a historic mountain of unemployment claims on outdated technology. Large corporations, including companies slammed by the “social distancing” edicts keeping people at home, remain in the dark on the details of promised loans.

Small businesses by the millions are desperately seeking cash, while banks still lack the right paperwork days into a lending programme.

Manappuram jumps 10% in morning trade

#CNBCTV18Maerket | Manappuram extends gains, up 10% in trade pic.twitter.com/zFTQ5DTxfV

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Market off highs, Sensex slips below 31,000-mark

Market gave up the morning gains as Sensex was trading 761.02 points or 2.53 percent higher at 30,828.23 while Nifty was up 185.35 points or 2.11 percent at 8,977.55 at around 11.20 am.

India’s Wabag secures 5-year operation, maintenance contract from Bahrain STP

Va Tech Wabag, a water technology Indian multinational company, has secured a Rs 90 crore order from Bahrain authorities towards operation, maintenance and management of the Madinat Salman sewage treatment plant and long sea outfall for five years.

Wabag was awarded the engineering, procurement and construction scope of 40 million litres per day sewage treatment plant and long sea outfall to cater to a population of one lakh.

The project was funded by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development.

Pandemic set to tip Japan into deep recession this year

Japan is expected to slip into a deep recession this year with the economy set to contract for a third straight quarter in April-June, a Reuters poll showed on Wednesday, as the coronavirus outbreak wreaks havoc on businesses and daily life.

Nearly 80 percent of economists polled saw the Bank of Japan’s next move to be an easing of monetary policy. About half said it would happen this month, which would follow the BOJ’s easing of corporate funding strains in March to calm markets jolted by the health crisis.

The pandemic has disrupted supply chains and severely damaged the tourism sector while social distancing rules to contain the spread of the virus has put an additional burden on economic activity, setting Japan on course for a deep recession.

Gold holds steady amid virus worries

Gold prices held steady as a stronger dollar countered risk-off sentiment stemming from fading optimism over signs of a slowing spread of the new coronavirus amid rising deaths.

Spot gold was steady at $1,648.84 per ounce, having risen to its highest since 10 March on Tuesday at $1,671.40.

US gold futures were also flat, at $1,683.30.

“Uncertainty continues to weigh on risk sentiment, which is positive for gold in the longer term,” Phillip Futures analysts said in a note, adding that the coronavirus “has not been completely managed.”

IndusInd Bank up more than 37% in last two sessions

#CNBCTV18Market | IndusInd Bank continues to move higher, up more than 37% in last two sessions pic.twitter.com/wbDOjLLoio

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

About 25 million jobs at risk with airline shutdown: IATA

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has released a new analysis showing that some 25 million jobs are at risk of disappearing with plummeting demand for air travel amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Globally, the livelihoods of some 65.5 million people are dependent on the aviation industry, including sectors such as travel and tourism. Among these are 2.7 million airline jobs.

In a scenario of severe travel restrictions lasting for three months, IATA research calculates that 25 million jobs in aviation and related sectors are endangered across the world: 11.2 million jobs in the Asia Pacific, 5.6 million jobs in Europe, 2.9 million jobs in Latin America, 2 million jobs in North America, 2 million jobs in Africa and 0.9 million jobs in the Middle East.

In the same scenario, airlines are expected to see full-year passenger revenues fall by 252 billion dollars (minus 44 percent) in 2020 as compared to 2019.

Market trims gains, Nifty slips below 9,000-mark

Market trimmed gains in the early morning trade as Sensex was trading 678.71 points or 2.26 percent up at 30,745.92 while Nifty was up 190.95 points or 2.17 percent at 8,983.15 at around 10.50 am.

FCI moves about 20.19 Lakh MT food grains in 14 days

Amidst the #COVID19 lockdown FCI moves 721 rakes carrying about 20.19 Lakh MT food grains across the country in 14 days since 24th March#IndiaFightsCorona

Read here: https://t.co/dnpjx8tkEU

— PIB India (@PIB_India) April 7, 2020

About 400 million workers in India may sink into poverty: UN report

About 400 million people working in the informal economy in India are at risk of falling deeper into poverty due to the coronavirus crisis which is having ‘catastrophic consequences’, and is expected to wipe out 195 million full-time jobs or 6.7 percent of working hours globally in the second quarter of this year, the UN’s labour body has warned.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) in its report titled ‘ILO Monitor 2nd edition: COVID-19 and the world of work’, describes coronavirus pandemic as ’the worst global crisis since World War II’.

“Workers and businesses are facing catastrophe, in both developed and developing economies. We have to move fast, decisively, and together. The right, urgent, measures, could make the difference between survival and collapse,” ILO director-general Guy Ryder said on Tuesday.

“In India, with a share of almost 90 per cent of people working in the informal economy, about 400 million workers in the informal economy are at risk of falling deeper into poverty during the crisis. Current lockdown measures in India, which are at the high end of the University of Oxford’’s COVID-19 Government Response Stringency Index, have impacted these workers significantly, forcing many of them to return to rural areas,” ILO said.

ECoR to run two parcel express trains

he East Coast Railway (ECoR) has decided to run at least two parcel express trains to ensure quick transportation of essential commodities and goods by government agencies, NGOs and traders during the ongoing lockdown in force to contain the spread of COVID-19.

One parcel express train will run between Visakhapatnam-Sambalpur-Visakhapatnam and another between Visakhapatnam-Cuttack-Visakhapatnam, both the trains will carry essential goods to different loading and unloading points, a railway official said.

Despite the 21-day nationwide lockdown, railways have taken up the challenge to ensure uninterrupted supply of essential commodities like coal, food grains, fertilizer, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, milk, edible oil, sugar, salt and medicine in different areas, he said.

Rupee slips 21 paise to 75.85 against dollar

The rupee fell 21 paise to 75.85 against the US dollar in opening trade on Wednesday, as investors braced for a prolonged period of uncertainty as coronavirus cases rise.
 

Forex traders said rising brent prices and firm US dollar index weighed on the local unit.

The rupee opened weak at 75.83 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 75.85, down 21 paise over its last close.

The rupee had settled at 75.64 against the US dollar on Tuesday. According to Reliance Securities rising brent prices and firm US Dollar Index could limit gains for the rupee.

 Nifty trading at the highest level in 13 sessions

#CNBCTV18Market | #Nifty trading at the highest level in 13 sessions pic.twitter.com/Ru8cGv6pcI

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Nissan’s China sales drop 44.9% in March

Japanese automaker Nissan said on Wednesday its sales in China fell 44.9 percent from a year earlier to 73,297 units in March, as the coronavirus epidemic continues to hit the world’s biggest car market.

Nissan, which has a joint venture with Hubei-based Dongfeng Motor, said it sees “signs of recovery in the market”, according to a statement.

Rival Toyota’s China sales dropped 15.9 percent year-on-year in March while Honda’s fell 50.8 percent.

BOJ to scale back some operations

The Bank of Japan said on Wednesday it would scale back some operations following the government’s decision to declare a state of emergency amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The central bank will continue operations crucial to social infrastructure such as issuing bank notes, making monetary policy decisions and ensuring smooth settlement of funds.

But it will scale back non-urgent operations such as long-term research and studies for academic papers. It will continue to release key economic indicators as usual, the BOJ said.

Gujarat firms to export hydroxychloroquine to US: Vijay Rupani

With the COVID-19 outbreak creating additional demand for anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Tuesday said three companies from the state will export it to the United States.

In an interview to a private radio station, Rupani said his government has kept aside 1 crore hydroxychloroquine tablets to deal with any eventuality.

“Gujarat is shining the world over. US President Trump has been vigorously demanding that drug from India. Now, when the Centre has given permission for its export, Gujarat is all set to send it to the United States,” said Rupani.

“Three Gujarat-based companies have already started production of that drug to be supplied to the US. To be on the safer side, we have kept aside 1 crore tablet for our own use,” he said.

Sensex zooms over 1,000 points, Nifty reclaims 9,000-mark

Market made sharp recovery from the opening losses as Sensex soared 1055.86 points or 3.51 percent to 31,123.07 while the broader Nifty was up 294.20 points or 3.35 percent at 9,086.40 at around 10.25 am.

M&M surges over 4% in early trade

#CNBCTV18Market | M&M surges after co's name appears in Credit Suisse's list of GARP stocks pic.twitter.com/bMhCQvZ46A

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Nifty’s Tuesday upmove on surge in banking, pharma stocks

Sudden change in sentiment caused a rally of 9 percent in Nifty as it settled above three-digit Gann number of 871(0).

Tuesday’s upmove was driven by banking, FMCG and pharma stocks, said YES Securities. Nifty breadth turned positive with all the components settling higher.

A quick comeback from 8,100 zone implies renewed buying interest at lower levels, hence the benchmark index could complete its pending upmove towards three-digit Gann number of 901(0), the same is marked near recent high.

“Pullback moves in recent history have proved to be short-lived in nature. So, it is essential for index to surpass 9,000 mark in this week’s trade to confirm an upside shift in orbit. Failure to do so would result in price consolidation. Index’ price action took form of ‘bullish separating line’ candle pattern (i.e. it opened above previous bearish candle’s peak and trending positive through the session),” it said.

Oil futures trade firm

Oil futures traded firm as investors await the details of a meeting scheduled for Thursday where Saudi Arabia and Russia have apparently agreed to cut production, said According to YES Securities.

“However, we very well could see more price weakness set in over the oil group later this week, especially if the proposed cuts disappoint, as we think they will give that the size of the cuts currently being bandied about (10-15 mbpd) are nowhere sufficient to balance the market,” it said.

India’s small businesses struggle to pay wages

Hundreds of thousands of cash-starved Indian small businesses have either deferred or cut their workers’ wages this month, say industrialists and union leaders, amid a 21-day nationwide lockdown to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

All India Manufacturers Organisation (AIMO)- an industry body representing some 100,000 small manufacturers – said more than two-thirds of its members faced problems in paying salaries on Tuesday, the usual day for paying monthly wages.

“We have no funds to pay wages,” said KE Raghunathan, former national president of AIMO, who runs a solar parts’ manufacturing unit in the Southern Indian city of Chennai.

Beyond delayed payments, Indian exports have also been hit by the pandemic, and companies have faced over 50 percent cancellations in orders, said Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), nearly half of whose members are small businesses.

Rupee opens slightly lower against dollar

#Rupee opens slightly lower against Tuesday’s close pic.twitter.com/REeVXBOg61

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Some firms resume operations

Maruti Suzuki said it produced 92,540 units in March 2020 against 1,36,201 units in March 2019. 

Galaxy Surfactants said it had partially resumed operations at its plants with effect from 6 April, 2020.

Hero MotoCorp extends the duration of all its warranty and free services in view of COVID-19 lockdown.

Wipro will release the earnings for the quarter and year ended 31 March 2020, on 15 April.

Oil prices jump on hopes for OPEC, Russia meeting on output cuts

Oil bounced back on Wednesday, with US crude jumping over $1, lifted by hopes that a meeting between OPEC members and allied producers on Thursday will trigger output cuts to shore up prices that have crumbled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Brent crude was up by 75 cents, or 2.4 percent, at $32.62 per barrel after falling 3.6 percent on Tuesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.30, or 5.5 percent, to $24.93 a barrel after dropping 9.4 percent in the previous session.

Oil prices jump on hopes for OPEC, Russia meeting on output cuts

Oil bounced back on Wednesday, with US crude jumping over $1, lifted by hopes that a meeting between OPEC members and allied producers on Thursday will trigger output cuts to shore up prices that have crumbled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Brent crude was up by 75 cents, or 2.4 percent, at $32.62 per barrel after falling 3.6 percent on Tuesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.30, or 5.5 percent, to $24.93 a barrel after dropping 9.4 percent in the previous session.

Sensex jumps over 500 points, Nifty above 8,900-mark

The market staged a comeback from the opening losses as Sensex jumped 522.06 points or 1.74 percent to 30,589.27 while the broader Nifty was up 163.50 points or 1.86 percent at 8,955.70 at around 9.50 am.

Mahindra & Mahindra and HUL were the top gainers in the Sensex pack.

ICRA revises rating of Va Tech Wabag

ICRA has revised its long term fund based facilities rating of the company to ICRA A (Negative) from ICRA A+ (Negative).

Pharma stocks trade high

#CNBCTV18Market | These three pharma stocks are trading at 52-week highs pic.twitter.com/CWBYSVAsSx

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Nifty Bank up

#CNBCTV18Market | Nifty Bank now up more than 400 points from lows pic.twitter.com/dfQDaMqseH

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Sensex gains over 600 points

#CNBCTV18Market | #Sensex gains more than 600 points from opening lows pic.twitter.com/ZIN1C6UYFN

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

FII and DII buys

According to NSE data, Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were buyers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 741.77 crore on Tuesday.

Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 422.51 crore.

Hindalco, Maruti among top losers

#CNBCTV18Market | Hindalco along with auto names top the list of #Nifty losers in the opening hour pic.twitter.com/dtAOYWBPfK

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Layoffs, closures to wipe out 6.7% of working hours worldwide: ILO

Workplace disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic are expected to wipe out labour equivalent to the effort of 195 million full-time workers, or 6.7% of hours clocked worldwide, in the second quarter of this year, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Tuesday.

More than four out of five workers globally are affected by full or partial closures, it said in a report.

The UN agency welcomed fiscal and monetary measures applied so far but urged countries to take steps to keep people connected to jobs they are no longer able to do, so fewer will end up unemployed.

“What we do now in terms of maintaining that relationship between workers and their enterprises to keep them on the labour market, that will pay dividends when it comes to the trajectory and the gradient of recovery hopefully in the latter part of this year,” ILO director-general Guy Ryder told a news conference.

Markets open on weak note

#CNBCTV18Market | #Sensex, #Nifty and Nifty Bank open with cuts of 1% each. Midcap Index down 0.3% in opening tick. Market breadth remains in favour of advances pic.twitter.com/onZCkPcFab

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Oil prices jump on hopes for OPEC, Russia meeting

Oil bounced back on Wednesday, with U.S. crude jumping over $1, lifted by hopes that a meeting between OPEC members and allied producers on Thursday will trigger output cuts to shore up prices that have crumbled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Brent crude was up by 75 cents, or 2.4 percent , at $32.62 per barrel by 0246 GMT after falling 3.6 percent on Tuesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.30, or 5.5 percent , to $24.93 a barrel after dropping 9.4 percent in the previous session.

Thursday’s videoconference meeting between members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, including Russia, is widely expected to be more successful than their gathering in early March. That ended in failure to extend cuts, and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia amid slumping demand.

But doubts remain over the role of the United States in any production curbs.

Coronavirus Outbreak: Q4 performance of IT companies to be impacted

#CNBCTV18Market | Impact of COVID-19 on Q4 performance & bookings likely to be limited for IT companies; expect sharply lower & wider range for FY21/Q1 growth guidance, says Jefferies pic.twitter.com/vFQQHFbIzI

— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18Live) April 8, 2020

Wall Street volatility raises fears of another sell-off

The evaporation of a rally on Wall Street in the closing minutes of Tuesday’s session shows that many investors fear the US stock market is in danger of a renewed tumble due to uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

Fueled by early signs of the outbreak plateauing in some US hot spots, including New York State, the S&P 500 traded up as much as 3.5 percent during the session, only to lose ground sharply late in the day to finish down 0.16 percent. The index, however, remains up 19 percent from its 23 March low.

Much of Wall Street’s recent recovery has been thanks to a $2 trillion package aimed at stimulating the economy as much of the country hibernates to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Stock market indices trade high

The Sensex was up 160.32 points or 0.53 percent at 30227.53, at 09:01 AM.

The Nifty was up 48.95 points or 0.56 percent at 8841.15.