Sensex tanks 811 pts in fag-end selloff; Nifty ends below 9,000

Mumbai, Mar 17 () Equity benchmark BSE Sensex plunged 811 points in fag-end selloff on Tuesday after a see-saw session as the coronavirus pandemic-led recession fears kept investors jittery.

After opening on a positive note, the 30-share index gyrated 1,653 points during the day. It finally settled 810.98 points or 2.58 per cent lower at 30,579.09.

Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty slumped 230.35 points or 2.50 per cent to close at 8,967.05.

Top losers in the Sensex pack included ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank, HDFC, Infosys and SBI.

On the other hand, HUL, Hero MotoCorp, PowerGrid, Maruti and Asian Paints were among the gainers.

According to traders, value-buying lifted benchmarks during the first half of the session, but the gains could not be sustained as markets succumbed to coronavirus-led fears of an impending recession.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Seoul ended in the red, while Hong Kong and Tokyo turned positive.

Markets in Europe cracked up to 3 per cent in early trade.

Meanwhile, the rupee appreciated marginally to 74.20 per US dollar (intra-day).

Brent crude oil futures fell 1.06 per cent to USD 29.73 per barrel.

The number of deaths around the world linked to the virus has topped 7,000, after Italy announced a new surge in fatalities, with over 1,75,000 infections recorded globally so far.

In India, the number of infected cases stood at 126, as per the union health ministry. ANS ABMABM