Sensex plunges as Covid spike scares market
BSE index shed 870 pts, Nifty slumps 230 pts; IT stocks stand tall amid the carnage
image for illustrative purpose
Mumbai: Equity benchmarks wilted under widespread selling on Monday as a record single-day jump in Covid-19 cases in the country unnerved investors and fanned fears over the economic recovery.
A sharp plunge in the rupee added to the concerns, traders said. After plunging over 1,400 points earlier in the day, the 30-share BSE Sensex pared some losses to finish at 49,159.32, down 870.51 points or 1.74 per cent. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty sank 229.55 points or 1.54 per cent to 14,637.80.
Bajaj Finance was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, plunging 5.81 per cent, followed by IndusInd Bank, SBI, M&M, Axis Bank, Bajaj Auto and ICICI Bank. IT stocks stood tall amid the carnage, with HCL Tech leading the gainers' chart with a jump of 3.08 per cent. TCS, Infosys, Bharti Airtel and Tech Mahindra were the other winners, gaining up to 2.32 per cent.
India recorded an all-time high of 1,03,558 coronavirus infections in a day, pushing the nationwide Covid-19 tally to 1,25,89,067, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday.
