Sensex tumbles 1,115 pts to close at 36,554; Nifty dips 326 pts to 10,806
Benchmark domestic stocks closed with marginal gains amid positive global cues
The domestic equity markets plunged more around 3 per cent on Thursday, September 24, 2020, amid heavy sell-off, weak global cues and monthly expiry. Domestic stocks fell for the sixth session in a row. The Sensex closed below 37,000-mark while the Nifty settled below 11,000 level.
The S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 1114.82 points, or 2.96 per cent, to 36,553.60. The Nifty 50 index slumped 326.30 points, or 2.93 per cent, to 10,805.55. Similarly, Nifty Bank fell 721.65 points, or 3.41 per cent, to 20,456.85.
The broader market at BSE also tumbled. The Mid-cap declined 2.14 per cent while the Small-cap ended down by 2.28 per cent.
Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 625 shares rose and 2023 shares fell, while three stocks advanced on Nifty 50 block and 47 declined. The three gainers on Nifty 50 are Bharti Infratel (up 2.85 per cent), Zee Entertainment (up 0.89 per cent) and Hindustan Unilever (0.25 per cent). The top losers include IndusInd Bank (down 7.45 per cent), Tata Motors (down 6.58 per cent), Bajaj Finance (down 6.57 per cent), Grasim (down 5.68 per cent) and TCS (5.45 per cent) among others.
Total Covid-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 31,870,904 with 976,311 deaths. India reported 966,382 active cases of Covid-19 infection and 91,149 deaths, data showed.
The UK reported 6,178 cases, up by 1,252 since Tuesday, as the country grapples with a Covid-19 surge. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula resurfaced. A South Korean official has been shot dead and burned by North Korean troops, said the South's Defence Ministry that condemned the "brutal act".
US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Wednesday, the central bank was not planning any "major" changes to its Main Street Lending Programme while saying that both the Fed and Congress need to "stay with it" in working to bolster the economic recovery. US composite business activity index slipped to 54.4 in September from 54.6 in the previous month, IHS Markit said on Wednesday.
The flash services purchasing managers index inched down to 54.6 from 55 in August. The flash manufacturing index rose to 53.5 in September from 53.1 in the prior month, which is a 20-month high.