Sensex, Nifty Post Best Three-Day Rally Since May 2009

• Nifty falls 26 percent, worst since October 2008
• Sensex falls 25 percent, worst since October 2008
• All constituents in Nifty, Sensex, Nifty bank post losses
• All sectoral indices report losses this series
• Barring Nifty FMCG, Nifty Pharma and Nifty I.T. other sectoral indices fall over 30 percent
• All constituents of all sectoral indices report losses in March series

Indian equity markets advanced for the third straight day, registering the best three-day rally since May 2009.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended with gains of 4.9 percent at 29,946, up 1,260 points. 23 out of the 30 stocks ended the day with gains. The index has advanced 15.2 percent in the last three days.

The NSE Nifty 50 index ended 3.89 percent higher at 8,641. 38 out of the 50 stocks ended with gains. Today's move takes Nifty's 3-day advance to 13.7 percent.

Among sectoral indices, all sectors ended with gains with the Nifty Realty index being the top performer with gains of 7 percent.

1,275 stocks ended the trading day with gains, while 503 stocks posted losses.

• Buy L&T around Rs 820 - 825 for target of Rs 950 and stop loss of Rs 775
• Buy Bata India around Rs 1,220 for target of Rs 1,320 and stop loss of Rs 1,170

• Nifty April futures add 50.7 percent in open interest and 37.3 lakh shares
• Nifty Bank April futures add 49.8 percent in open interest and 2.33 lakh shares

European stocks retreated with U.S. equity futures and most Asian shares on Thursday as investors looked past stimulus packages to the mounting human impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped at the open led by energy companies and miners after two days of gains.

European sovereign debt rose after the region’s central bank announced it will scrap limits on bond purchases for its emergency program in a landmark decision that gives it almost unlimited firepower to fight the economic fallout from the pandemic. The euro strengthened.

• Benchmark indices significantly off day's high
• Nifty up 1.7 percent at 8,459
• Sensex up 1.94 percent at 29,090
• Nifty Bank up 3.4 percent at 19,112
• Nifty Midcap Index up 2.5 percent
• Nifty Smallcap index up 3 percent
• India Volatility index down 6.9 percent at 72.26
• Most sectoral indices cool off from day's high
• Nifty Metal index turns negative; down 0.4 percent
• Nifty Auto, I.T., Media index up 1 percent each
• Nifty Pharma index up 2.2 percent
• Nifty Realty index top sectoral gainer; up 6.5 percent
• 1,298 stocks advance while 444 stocks are declining

• Shares of the tyre manufacturer are up for the second straight day.
• Currently trades 10.8 percent higher at Rs 689
• Sees biggest one-day gain since February 16, 2015
• Snapped six-day losing streak on Wednesday, ending with gains of 0.1 percent
• Made a 52-week high of Rs 1,153.4 on April 1, 2019; prices since then have fallen 48 percent
• Fell to its lowest level since 2015 on March 24, 2020

Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Ltd. has revised its trading hours starting March 30 until April 14 in view of the 21-day lockdown imposed to tackle the Coronavirus outbreak.

Trade timings for all commodities will end at 5 p.m. until April 14.

Other highlights of the press note include:

• Pre-open session for cancellation of orders with GTC/GTD validity will commence 15 minutes prior to start of trade.
• No evening session to be available on April 2, 6 and 14.
• No change in staggered delivery tender period for any commodity

• Stock gains for the second straight day
• Currently trades 16.8 percent higher at Rs 245.75
• Gains most since December 3, 2008
• Up 28 percent in two sessions
• Biggest two-day move since December 4, 2008
• Adds Rs 2,728 crore in market cap in last two sessions

• Stock snaps eight-day losing streak
• Falls over 50 percent in the last 9 sessions
• Made a 52-week high of Rs 210.5 on June 4, 2019; prices have fallen 85 percent since then
• As of Wednesday's close, the prices were at their lowest level since April 2014.
• Currently locked in a 5 percent upper circuit at Rs 33.25

• Nifty up 3.73 percent at 8,628
• Sensex up 4.22 percent at 29,741
• Nifty Bank up 7.9 percent at 19,943
• Nifty Midcap index up 3.25 percent
• Nifty Smallcap index up 2.9 percnt
• India Volatility index down 5.5 percent to 73.31
• All sectoral indices trade with gains
• Nifty Realty index up 7.1 percent, the most since April 2017
• Nifty Pharma, Nifty I.T. and Nifty PSU Bank up over 2 percent each
• IndusInd Bank remains top Nifty gainer - up 40 percent, the most since listing
• NTPC and GAIL remain top Nifty losers, down 3 percent each
• 1,310 stocks trade with gains while 389 stocks are declining

With railway services being suspended across the country due to the 21-day lockdown, IRCTC Ltd. is among the worst hit companies.

Ticket sales - its most profitable segment has seen a decline of 25 percent, the management told BloombergQuint in an interview on March 20. Ticketing sales contribute 85 percent of the company’s earnings.

However, the stock is locked in an upper circuit of 5 percent today, after being locked in a lower circuit for eight straight days.

The stock has fallen 57 percent from its lifetime high of Rs 1,995, made in February this year.

• Nifty April futures add 13.2 percent in open interest and 9.74 lakh shares.
• Nifty Bank April futures add 16.4 percent in open interest and 76,980 shares.

Nifty: March 26 Expiry

• 9,000 Call: Premium up 22.3 percent to Rs 17.55. The contract has added 10.5 lakh shares in open interest.
• 8,500 Call: Premium up 67.75 percent to Rs 206. The contract has shed 1.28 lakh shares in open interest.
• 8,800 Call: Premium up 78.17 percent to Rs 58.35. The contract has added 3 lakh shares in open interest.

Nifty Bank: March 26 Expiry

• 20,000 Call: Premium up 213.4 percent to Rs 319.35. The contract has added 93,600 shares in open interest.
• 21,000 Call: Premium up 47.2 percent to Rs 48.65. The contract has added 1.8 lakh shares in open interest.
• 20,500 Call: Premium up 125.72 percent to Rs 132.95. The contract has added 2.2 lakh shares in open interest.

After falling the most since its listing on Monday (down 23 percent), Bajaj Finance has rebounded, gaining for the third straight day.

Shares of the financial services company gained 9.1 percent on Tuesday, 4.5 percent on Wednesday and are up 10.5 percent in today's trading session.

The stock has now erased all of Monday's losses with this three-day move, which now stands at 26.6 percent.

The stock now trades at Rs 2,844 on the National Stock Exchange.

• Nifty up 3.98 percent at 8,645
• Sensex up 4.18 percent at 29,729
• Nifty Bank up 6.8 percent at 19,721
• Nifty Midcap and Smallcap index gain 3.7 percent each
• All sectoral indices trade with gains
• Nifty Auto, I.T., Metal and Pharma gain over 2 percent each
• India Volatility index down 5.7 percent to 73.20
• IndusInd Bank the top Nifty gainer; up 25 percent - the biggest single-day gain since listing.
• GAIL and Indian Oil are the top Nifty laggards; down 1 percent each
• 1,271 stocks are trading with gains while 346 stocks are declining

The last two sessions has seen the Nifty Bank surge 14 percent, nearly wiping out all the losses during the last five sessions.

All constituents barring Punjab National Bank have posted strong gains during the period. The index has gained over 2,500 points in the last two sessions.

The gaming and entertainment player snapped an 11-day losing streak today and is locked in a 5 percent upper circuit.

The company in a statement on Wednesday said that it will consider a share buyback in its board meeting on March 28.

Shares have more than halved in the 11 session decline. From Rs 120.65 on March 9, prices are now at Rs 56.50, down nearly 60 percent.

Indian equity markets opened higher for the third straight day, despite mixed cues emerging from the Asia Pacific.

The S&P BSE Sensex opened 1.92 percent higher at 29,083, while the NSE Nifty 50 too opened with 1.72 percent gains at 8,460.

India Volatility Index fell another 3 percent to 75.27.

Among sectoral indices, most of them are subdued at open, barring Nifty I.T. which is up over 2 percent and Nifty Pharma which is gaining 1.2 percent.

Market breadth is in favour of advances. 803 stocks have opened with gains while 592 stocks are declining in opening trades.

• Buy Nifty above 8,360 for target of 8,550-8,600 and stop loss of 8,200
• Buy Titan for target of Rs 935 and stop loss of Rs 840
• Sell CESC futures for target of Rs 355 and stop loss of Rs 390

The currency and bond markets resumed for trade after a holiday on Wednesday. The Indian currency opened stronger at 75.88 compared to Tuesday's close of 76.10 against the U.S. dollar.

• Buy Nifty futures on dips to 8,100 for target of 8,500 and stop loss of 7,900
• Sell Infosys April futures on rise to Rs 625 for target of Rs 575 and stop loss of Rs 650

• Interglobe Aviation: Restriction on operations of international and domestic flights may continue till April 14.
• Delta Corp: To consider share buyback on March 28.
• NTPC: 2nd unit of 660 MW Khargone Super Thermal Power Project has been added to installed capacity.
• Indiabulls Real Estate: Rs 500 crore share buyback to be completed in the next quarter.
• India Cements: Radhakishan Damani bought 0.52 percent stake at Rs 94.97 per share.
• Thyrocare Technologies: Nalanda Fund bought 3.35 percent stake at Rs 499.97 per share.

Find out all that you need to know going into today’s trade and about the companies impacted due to the Covid-19 outbreak HERE!

• Benchmark indices post their first two-day gain since February 12
• S&P 500 saw its biggest two-day gain since November 2008 while the Dow Jones' two-day advance was the most since 1987.
• The Dow Jones still remains 25 percent lower from its record high in February.
• Markets ended off the highest point of the day after Vermont senator Bernie Sanders threatened to hold up the stimulus bill unless the objections raised to it were dropped.
• Yield on the 10-year treasury was little changed at 0.84 percent

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of NSE Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, fell 1.02 percent to 8,276 as of 8:05 a.m.

Asian markets fell after global equities saw two straight days of gains for the first time since mid-February. Japanese equities fell over 2 percent, while those in South Korea and Hong Kong declined as well. Markets in Australia saw modest gains.

Australian and New Zealand dollar are trading with losses while treasuries are steady.

Short on time? Well, then listen to this podcast for a quick summary of All You Need To Know before the opening bell.