Stock markets, commodity, forex closed today for Ambedkar Jayanti; trading to resume tomorrow

The stock markets–Bombay Stock Exchange, National Stock Exchange (NSE) are closed today (14 April) on account of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti. Besides the bourses, debt, forex and commodity markets are also closed. Trading will resume on Wednesday, 15 April at the usual timings. On 13 April (Monday), the markets opened in the red after a three-day weekend. The markets were shut on Friday for Good Friday. The markets were impacted as Asia’s third-biggest economy looked set to extend a lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus, while a rise in oil prices also weighed on sentiment. The benchmark indices ended lower with Nifty below 9,000-level dragged by auto, realty and banking names. At close, the Sensex tumbled 469.60 points or 1.51 percent at 30690.02, while Nifty was down 118.05 points or 1.30 percent at 8993.85. About 1194 shares have advanced, 1171 shares declined, and 201 shares are unchanged. [caption id=“attachment_5678251” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] After hitting a low of 30,474.15 during the day, the 30-share BSE barometer ended 469.60 points or 1.51 percent lower at 30,690.02. Similarly, the NSE Nifty dropped 118.05 points or 1.30 percent to 8,993.85. Bajaj Finance was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, slumping over 10 percent, followed by M&M, Titan, Hero MotoCorp, ICICI Bank and Tech Mahindra. On the other hand, L&T, Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, UltraTech Cements and NTPC were among the gainers. On sectoral front, realty index fell 5 percent followed by auto, bank, energy, IT and FMCG. However, buying seen in the metal, pharma and infra sectors. BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices ended lower. Indian bourses opened on a negative note tracking subdued global market peers in Asia, said Narendra Solanki, Head- Equity Research (Fundamental), Anand Rathi to PTI. “Sentiments remained downbeat due to rise in COVID-19 cases in the country and fears of extended lockdown weighed in which led sell-off and short-term profit booking in most financial services and bank stocks,” he noted. Deepak Jasani, Head Retail Research, HDFC Securities, told Firstpost, the markets ended Monday after witnessing a mildly volatile session. The Nifty closed 1.3 percent lower at 8993. “Financials came under pressure on renewed worries over low credit growth and higher slippages. Metals and telecom stocks were however in demand. Volumes in the market were lower than the average of the past few sessions, with European fund managers on holiday due to Easter being one reason. Market participants are awaiting the outcome of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the nation on 14 April at 10 AM. “As global coronavirus cases exceed 1.8 million, the World Bank has warned that South Asia is on course for its worst economic performance in 40 years. Risk aversion has returned globally as US continued to report most number of active cases and deaths while Europe is seeing slower addition to cases/deaths. Nifty could take support over the next few sessions in 8654-8819 band while 9131 could provide tough resistance. Rupee settles on flat note at 76.27 against US dollar On Monday, the rupee pared initial losses and settled for the day on a flat note at 76.27 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday amid weakening of the greenback in international market. Forex traders said the rupee is trading in a narrow range as losses in the greenback supported the rupee, while weak domestic equities weighed on the local unit. Moreover, investor confidence strengthened after the minutes of the central bank’’s policy meeting revealed that the RBI will use any instrument necessary to revive growth and preserve financial stability. “The Reserve Bank will continue to remain vigilant and will not hesitate to use any instrument – conventional and unconventional – to mitigate the impact of COVID-19, revive growth and preserve financial stability,” Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said.