What changed for the market while you were sleeping? Top 10 things to know

Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the index in India with a 78 points gain.

The S&P BSE Sensex, Nifty50, and Nifty Bank hit a fresh 3-year low amid the volatility seen in markets. The Nifty Midcap index closed at a 4-year low while India VIX jumped to a 12-year high. Sensex dropped 581 points to settle at 28,288 while the Nifty50 plunged 205 points to close at 8,263.

According to the pivot charts, the key support level for Nifty is placed at 7,872.18, followed by 7,480.92. If the index moves up, key resistance levels to watch out for are 8,615.08 and 8,966.72.

Nifty Bank closed 2.41 percent down at 20,083.50. The important pivot level, which will act as crucial support for the index, is placed at 18827.76, followed by 17572.03. On the upside, key resistance levels are placed at 21187.16 and 22290.83.

Stay tuned to Moneycontrol to find out what happens in currency and equity markets today. We have collated a list of important headlines across news platforms which could impact Indian as well as international markets:

US Markets

US stocks managed to post gains on Thursday after recent steep losses as policymakers around the world took further emergency actions to try to help financial markets cope with deep coronavirus-driven economic damage.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 188.27 points, or 0.95%, to 20,087.19, the S&P 500 gained 11.29 points, or 0.47%, to 2,409.39 and the Nasdaq Composite added 160.73 points, or 2.3%, to 7,150.58.

Asian Markets

Asian shares sought a reprieve on Friday as Wall Street eked out gains, bonds rallied and oil boasted its biggest bounce on record, though a panicked rush into U.S. dollars suggested the crisis was far from done.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan firmed 0.6%, while Australia’s beleaguered market rose 2.9%. Japan’s Nikkei went the other way and dipped 1%.

SGX Nifty

Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the index in India with a 78 points gain. The Nifty futures were trading at 8,253 on the Singaporean Exchange around 08:12 hours IST.

NBFCs turn to banks for funds after MFs take a backseat

Battling liquidity crunch, NBFCs are turning towards banks for meeting their funding requirements. According to a report by CARE Ratings, NBFCs’ borrowing profile has changed significantly from capital market instruments to bank borrowings. Banks’ lending to NBFCs registered a growth of 34.7 per cent from September 2018 to January 2020.

The exposure of mutual funds into the various debt instruments of the NBFC sector has declined since July 2018, when the crisis surfaced.

India’s GDP growth to be hit, says CEA Subramanian

India’s growth is set to fall in the coming months as coronavirus-induced lockdowns and restrictions continue to disrupt economic activity, affecting a wide swathe areas, from shops and restaurants to street hawkers to factories, the country’s top-most policy adviser said.

“See, the coronavirus is a completely unanticipated natural disaster. And it’s a period of significant uncertainty. So, I think it will be difficult to say what will be the actual impact. In in any episode like this, oftentimes, the uncertainty stems from unknown unknowns. So, putting a magnitude on it is very difficult,” Chief Economic Adviser KV Subramanian told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interview.

BOE cuts rates to 0.1%

The Bank of England cut its interest rates to a record low of 0.1 percent and added 200 billion pounds to its asset purchase program in its latest emergency action to mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

US Senate will seek deal on $1 tn coronavirus economic aid package

US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced emergency legislation on Thursday to stem the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, and Republicans and Democrats agreed to meet on Friday to seek an agreement.

The $1 trillion-plus package will include direct financial help for Americans, relief for small businesses and their employees, steps to stabilize the economy and new support for healthcare professionals and coronavirus patients, McConnell said.

“We are ready to act as soon as agreement with our colleagues across the aisle can be reached,” he said on the Senate floor. “The Senate is not going anywhere until we take action.”

ADAG’s entire exposure to Yes Bank fully secured: Anil Ambani to ED

Anil Ambani on March 19 said ADAG’s entire exposure to embattled private lender Yes Bank is fully secured, CNBC-TV18 reported. The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) issued a statement saying that Ambani met officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to clarify the group’s position with respect to its exposure to Yes Bank.

As per the report, Ambani told ED officials that all transactions between ADAG and Yes Bank are in compliance with the law and financial regulations. He added that the group neither has any direct or indirect exposure to Rana Kapoor, his wife, and his daughters nor is it exposed to any entities controlled by them.

Airlines need up to $200 bn in emergency aid: IATA

Up to $200 billion is needed to rescue the world’s airlines during the coronavirus crisis, the global aviation association said on March 19, appealing especially to African and Middle Eastern countries to provide emergency assistance. “Support measures are urgently needed,” the International Air Transport Association said in a statement, adding that “on a global basis, IATA estimates that emergency aid of up to $200 billion is required”.

Rupee plunges 84 paise to 75.10 against dollar

The rupee continued its downward spiral and plunged 84 paise to a new record low of 75.10 (provisional) against the dollar on Thursday, as investors braced for a coronavirus-led economic recession. Traders said there is a sense of anxiety among investors as they see the global as well as domestic economy plunging into a deep crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed over 9,000 and sickened lakhs of people around the globe.

At the inter-bank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 74.96. During the day, it saw a high of 74.70 and a low of 75.30 against the American currency. The domestic unit finally settled at 75.10 against the greenback, down 84 paise over its previous close.

India’s fuel demand drops 11% in March as Covid-19 hits aviation, transport sectors

India’s fuel demand has dropped by a steep 10-11 per cent in the first two weeks of March as the outbreak of coronavirus (Covid-19) led to the cancellation of flights and reduction in industrial activity. The country had consumed 19.5 million tonnes of petroleum products in March 2019, official data showed. Assuming consumption in two halves of the month was almost the same, as much as 10 million tonnes of fuel was consumed during the first fortnight of March 2019.

“The petroleum industry is witnessing the impact of coronavirus on sales of all petroleum products. The overall demand for liquid fuels has gone down by 10-11 per cent in the first fortnight of March 2020,” said Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the country’s largest fuel retailer, in a statement.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 4,622.93 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares of worth Rs 4,367.43 crore in the Indian equity market on March 19, provisional data available on the NSE showed.