Shares Sink As Coronavirus Pandemic Fears Grow

The Bombay Stock Exchange building is reflected in the glasses of a man as he watches a large screen outside the facade of the building in Mumbai on February 1, 2020

Indian shares sank on Friday for a sixth straight session, capping their worst week in more than a decade, over fears that the fast-spreading coronavirus (Covid-19) could trigger a global recession.

Asia’s third-largest economy is scheduled to release December quarter growth data later in the day that is expected to show a slight improvement, but analysts have already forecast a bumpy March quarter on growing fears of a global pandemic.

The broader NSE Nifty 50 index ended 3.71% lower at 11,219.20 and the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex fell 3.4% to close at 38,383.32.

For the week, the Nifty 50 index shed 7.3%, while the Sensex dropped 6.8%, their worst decline since the 2008-09 financial crisis.

Global share markets were also sharply lower on Friday, marking their worst week since the 2008 global financial crisis and bringing the wipeout in value terms to $5 trillion.

“There are concerns that the outbreak will adversely impact … global supply chains big time, thereby affecting economic growth of most nations,” Ajit Mishra, vice president of research at Religare Broking, said in a note.

Even sectors like information technology tumbled despite a weaker rupee, indicating increasing anxiety amongst investors, he added.

Metals and mining stocks bore the brunt of Friday’s selloff on worries of exposure to China, the epicentre of the virus.

Vedanta Ltd was the top laggard in the Nifty 50 index, dropping 12.7%, while Indian Oil Corp managed to eke out meagre gains to end as the lone gainer in the index.

The Nifty 50 index is down 9.9% and the Sensex 9.2% from their record highs hit on Jan. 20, largely due to worries about the outbreak.