INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Nifty Bank, Financial Services, PSU Bank, Auto and IT sectoral indices traded 1.4-3.4 per cent lowerDomestic share markets extended losses
to tumble more than 2 per cent in the last hour of trade on Friday, owing to weakness in banking, financial services and IT shares
The S-P BSE Sensex dropped as much as 765 points to hit 27,500 at the lowest level of the day whereas the broader NSE Nifty 50 tumbled as
much as 198 points to hit 8.056 on the downside
Selling pressure in banking, automobile and IT stocks weighed on the markets, however strong buying interest in pharmaceutical and consumer
goods counters kept the losses in check. At 2:44 pm, the Sensex was down 705 points at 27,560 and the Nifty was at 8,061, down 193 points
from the previous close.Analysts say market participants will monitor updates on the spread of the coronavirus pandemic closely in the near
term. "Retail, pharma and FMCG shares will be least affected from the outbreak of the virus and reports that US companies may shift
their bases from China to India will be positive for Indian equities," AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital, told
TheIndianSubcontinent.ICICI Bank was the top percentage loser in the Nifty basket of 50 shares, down 7 per cent at Rs 289
IndusInd Bank, JSW Steel, Titan, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, Wipro, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Steel trading with
losses of between 4 per cent and 6.5 per cent each.On the flipside, Sun Pharma was top Nifty gainer, up 10 per cent at Rs 377
ITC, Cipla, GAIL India, Bharat Petroleum, ONGC, Mahindra - Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Dr Reddy's Labs and Indian Oil were up
between 2 per cent and 9 per cent each.Eight of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange traded lower in late afternoon
deals, led by the Nifty Private Bank index which was down 3.5 per cent
The Nifty Bank, Financial Services, PSU Bank, Auto and IT sectoral indices traded 1.4-3.4 per cent lower each.On the other hand, Nifty
Pharma index surged over 5 per cent, followed by the Nifty FMCG index which was 2.5 per cent.Mid- and small-cap shares also faced selling
The Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 indices were down 0.6 per cent and 1 per cent respectively.
