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Sensex, Nifty decline as coronavirus infects over 1,000 people

By Reuters

  • 30 Mar 2020
Sensex, Nifty decline as coronavirus infects over 1,000 people
Credit: Reuters

Indian shares ended lower on Monday as coronavirus cases in Asia's third-largest economy rose to over a thousand, stoking concerns about the impact on businesses and growth.

The broader NSE Nifty 50 index closed down 4.38% at 8,281.1 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was 4.61% lower at 28,440.32.

Government data showed 1,071 positive coronavirus cases in India and 29 deaths from infection, as of Monday morning.

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Fresh cases were being reported in spite of the enforced 21-day lockdown that began last week, where citizens were asked to stay at home and many businesses halted operations.

Investor caution remained even after the country's central bank on Friday announced a slew of measures to cushion the economic impact from the virus, including a 75 basis-point rate cut.

Banks were among the biggest drags on Monday, with the private banking index shedding 6.04% and the overall Nifty banking index dropping 5.94%.

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The Nifty financials index fell over 7% dragged by shadow lenders Bajaj Finance and HDFC Ltd, which both fell over 11% and topped the losers on the blue-chip index.

Drugmaker Cipla Ltd was the day's top gainer, rising 5.9%.

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