The domestic stock markets closed with significant losses on Monday, tracking a global selloff amid rising coronavirus cases in Europe and the United States. The 30-share BSE Sensex ended at 40,145.50, down 540.00 points or 1.33%, while the broader 50-share NSE Nifty settled 162.60 points or 1.36% lower at 11,767.75.
Shares of oil-to-telecom conglomerate Reliance Industries closed at Rs 2,028.70, down 3.97%. The decline in Reliance’s shares came a day after a Singapore arbitration court restrained Future Group and Reliance Industries Limited from proceeding with the Rs 24,713-crore deal signed in August for Future Retail to sell its retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing units to Reliance Retail and Fashionstyle.
Responding to the arbitration, Reliance has said that it intends to complete the transaction with Future Group without any delay.
Apart from Reliance, automobile and banking sector heavyweights like Bajaj Auto, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank lost more than 2.50% during the day’s trade. On the other hand, HDFC Life, Nestle, Kotak Mahindra Bank and IndusInd Bank, ending 1.44 to 3.16% higher each, were the top gainers in the index.
The rupee depreciated by 23 paise to settle at around four-week low of 73.84 against the US dollar on Monday. Muted domestic equities and strong American currency weighed on investor sentiment.
Share markets elsewhere in Asia largely declined, with MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan down 0.23%, receding from a recent 31-month peak.
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