Gap-up start for the markets!

The entire nation had been awaiting an announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to know whether or not the lockdown will continue. Though several states had already declared lockdown extension but still, people were waiting for an official confirmation. During his address to the nation, Prime Minister mentioned India’s fight against Coronavirus, saying that it’s going on very strongly and the lockdown will be extended till May 3. Along with this, he also mentioned that restrictions in some areas and district may be eased from April 20 but this is conditionally, depending upon zero number of cases found in that area and only if an improvement in situation is seen. Though the markets were closed, the bulls rejoiced this announcement and were seen dancing on SGX Nifty as it jumped more than 200 points. On Wednesday morning, SGX Nifty is trading above 9,200-mark, indicating a gap-up start for the index; however, we feel the upmove may be restricted as the zone of 9,350-9,400 is a big hurdle to cross. On the earnings front, Wipro is slated to announce its Q4 numbers today.

Asian indices were trading mixed on Wednesday as IMF warned that Coronavirus crisis will leave lasting scars on the global economy and forecasting this year would be the worst global economic contraction since the Great Depression of 1930s. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has gained 0.35 per cent but Japan’s Nikkei 225 and China’s Shanghai Composite were down by 0.50 and 0.05 per cent, respectively. 

Back home, the markets had ended Monday’s session in red as several states announced extension of lockdown till April 30. BSE Sensex slipped 1.51 per cent to close at 30,690 and Nifty closed just below its important psychological 9,000 mark down by 1.30 per cent. In the broader market, Nifty Mid-cap and Nifty Small-Cap lost 1.42 and 0.52 per cent, respectively. On the sectoral front, majority of the sectors ended in red wherein Nifty Realty, Nifty Media and Nifty Financial Services lost the most. On the flip side, Nifty Pharma and Nifty Metal rose by 2.77 and 1.93 per cent, respectively. 

In overnight trade, US stocks reached their best closing levels in over a month amid optimism surrounding continued signs thereby, suggesting that Coronavirus curve may be flattening in the worst affected nations. The tech-heavy Nasdaq outperformed its counterparts as it jumped by nearly four per cent, while, S&P 500 and Dow rose 3.1 and 2.4 per cent, respectively. Majority of European indices ended the day higher as few countries planned to ease some lockdown restrictions.