Coronavirus stings the markets

The markets witnessed a massive bout of volatility last week and we believe that the last week’s volatility was just a trailer! As we enter the Budget week, markets are likely to witness an elevated volatility. The fresh week is expected to start on a scary note for the markets as investors across the globe are rattled by the spread of coronavirus outbreak. SGX Nifty indicates that Nifty may open with a deep cut of 111 points at 12,161 mark. The bias is completely on the negative side today. However, market participants will continue to monitor key important results such as Dr Reddy, HDFC and Torrent Pharma, which are scheduled to release their Q3 numbers today. At the opening bell, investors will also react to ICICI Bank Q3 earnings which were released during the weekend.

On the Asian side, concerns about the rapid spread of coronavirus are looming large. Japan’s Nikkei 225 has plunged almost 2 per cent. China and Hong Kong markets are closed on account of Chinese New Year holiday.

Back home, key benchmark indices extended its winning streak for the second straight day on Friday. Nifty and BSE Sensex registered gains of 0.56 and 0.55 per cent, respectively. The broader market continued to outperform, Nifty mid-cap and small-cap rose by 0.92 and 0.79 per cent, respectively. Talking about sectoral performance, barring Nifty pharma and Nifty IT, all other indices closed in green. Nifty Metal and Nifty Media were the top performers.

In US, the markets opened higher on Friday but sank deep into negative territory as the mood turned apprehensive on Wall Street as concerns over the deadly coronavirus continued to escalate. A second case in US was recently diagnosed of the deadly virus. At the closing bell, Dow lost 170 points, S&P shed 36 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq plummeted 88 points. Meanwhile, European indices ended the last trading session of the week on a cheerful note amid upbeat economic data.