Category: Business

Infosys was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, shedding up to 4%, followed by Kotak Bank, Hero MotoCorp, Tech Mahindra, Titan and Axis Bank.

PTI

Equity benchmark Sensex dropped over 300 points in opening trade on Thursday tracking losses in global markets as investors fretted over rising number of COVID-19 cases and its impact on the world economy.

After hitting a low of 30,016.17, the 30-share index was trading 336.77 points or 1.11% lower at 30,043.04.

Similarly, the NSE Nifty was quoting 81.10 points, or 0.91%, down at 8,844.20.

Infosys was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, shedding up to 4%, followed by Kotak Bank, Hero MotoCorp, Tech Mahindra, Titan and Axis Bank.

On the other hand, L&T, PowerGrid, Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries and ONGC were among the gainers.

In the previous session, the BSE barometer ended 310.21 points or 1.01% lower at 30,379.81, and the Nifty settled 68.55 points, or 0.76%, down at 8,925.30.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were net buyers in the capital market in the last trading session, as they bought equity shares worth ₹1,358.66 crore, according to provisional exchange data.

According to traders, tepid start to the earnings season with weak results from Wipro hurt domestic market mood.

The IT major posted 6% decline in net profit for March quarter that was battered by the fallout of COVID-19, and said it will not provide revenue forecast for the current quarter due to business uncertainty caused by the pandemic.

The company’s shares were trading 0.48% lower from their previous close.

Industry bellwether Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is scheduled to announce its quarterly earnings later in the day. Its shares were down up to 1.58%.

The BSE IT index was the worst hit, falling over 2%.

Further, investors across the world are jittery over the economic outlook marred by mounting Covid-19 infections, they said.

The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 414, while the number of cases in the country climbed to 12,380.

Global tally of the infections has crossed 20 lakh, with over 1.3 lakh deaths.

Meanwhile, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo were in the red.

Stock exchanges on Wall Street ended significantly lower in overnight trade.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.66% to USD 28.15 per barrel.

The Indian rupee tanked 43 paise to settle at an all-time low of 76.87 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, amid rising concerns over COVID-19-led economic slowdown.

PTI

Forex traders said the weakness in the rupee was largely due to strengthening of the US Dollar against a basket of currencies as investors fled to safe haven greenback amid weakening risk appetite in the markets.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 76.75, and during the day lost further ground to settle at 76.87, registering a fall of 43 paise over its previous close.

During the session, the rupee moved between 76.68 and a low of 76.87 against the dollar.

On Wednesday, the rupee had settled at 76.44 against the greenback.

Besides, investor sentiments remain fragile amid concerns over the impact of coronavirus outbreak on the domestic as well as global economy.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.17 per cent to USD 28.18 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets, as they bought shares worth ₹1,358.66 crore on Wednesday, as per provisional data.

Domestic bourses were trading on a positive note with benchmark indices Sensex trading 334.06 points higher at 30,713.87 and Nifty up by 90.25 points at 9,015.55.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose by 0.29% to 99.75.

PTI

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday asked the government to ensure that Indian companies did not face any hostile takeover bid by foreign companies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The massive economic slowdown has weakened many Indian corporates making them attractive targets for takeovers,” he wrote on Twitter. “The Govt must not allow foreign interests to take control of any Indian corporate at this time of national crisis,” he said.

His comments came days after reports suggested that Chinese investors were scouting for shares in distressed European companies.

Last week, Italy announced changes to its foreign investment policy and protected its banking, insurance and healthcare sectors from hostile takeover by foreign companies. Spain, too, has made it mandatory for its companies to seek government approval if any foreign company wants to pick up over 10% stake in them.

About 15 million people face job losses in India’s exports’ sector following cancellation of over half of the orders and a gloomy forecast for global trade due to the COVID-19 pandemic, exporters’ body FIEO said.

PTI

Seeking immediate announcement of a relief package for exports, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President Sharad Kumar Saraf said fine balancing is required between life and livelihood, as opting for only one can be disastrous for the country.

He said that exporters were left with “very” few orders and if factories were not allowed to work with a minimum workforce, many of them will suffer “irreparable losses” which will bring them to the brink of closure as they were saddled with fixed costs that, in any case, had to be absorbed by them.

“With cancellation of over 50% of the orders and a gloomy forecast for the future, we expect 15 million job losses in exports and rising NPAs (non-performing assets) amongst exporting units, hitting the economy very badly,” he said.

“We are losing markets to China. All orders are going to China as they have resumed work. It will be very late if we don’t start our factories now,” he said.

The Indian rupee touched an all-time low against the dirham of Dh21.05 as the currency remained under massive pressure amid a significant rise in coronavirus cases in the country and weak domestic equities.

Forex traders said heavy selling in domestic equities dragged the local unit amid mounting fears of a coronavirus-led economic slowdown.

The currency settled 53 paise lower at 76.13 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday. Moreover, strengthening of the US dollar in the international market continues to weigh on the Indian currency.

Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer, Century Financial, said: “Indian Rupee touched an all time low against dirham as the currency continues to remain under pressure with the latest March PMI for service sector indicating economy clearly slipping into contraction.”

The IHS Markit India Services Business Activity Index dropped to 49.3 in March, down from February’s high of 57.5. The composite index fell to 50.6 in March from 57.6 in Feb. India which has currently over 4000+cases is likely to extend its lock down beyond the April 15 deadline. This is likely to inflect further pain for the economy which is already suffering owing to coronavirus related de-growth.

“For informal economy like India, the costs are especially huge with majority of the rural population surviving on daily wage income for livelihood. Overall dollar strength against major G4 currencies is another factor that is negative for emerging market currencies,” added Valecha.

Forex markets in India were closed on April 1 for the annual closing of banks and on April 2 on account of Ram Navami. On a weekly basis, the currency has depreciated by 124 paise. “Rupee remained under pressure following broad strength in the dollar and as FIIs continue to remain net sellers in the equity and debt segment,” said Gaurang Somaiyaa, Forex & Bullion Analyst, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

The Indian rupee appreciated by 26 paise to 75.87 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday tracking positive opening in domestic equities. Forex traders said higher opening in domestic equities supported the local unit, while sustained foreign fund outflows and concerns over coronavirus outbreak weighed on the local unit. At the interbank foreign exchange the rupee opened at 75.92, then gained ground and touched 75.87, registering a rise of 26 paise over its previous close.

On Friday, rupee had settled at 76.13 against the US dollar. Traders said investor sentiments remain fragile amid concerns over the impact of coronavirus outbreak on the domestic as well as global economy. The number of deaths around the world linked to the new coronavirus has crossed over 74,000. In India, over 4,400 coronavirus cases have been reported so far.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market, as they sold equity shares worth Rs19.6 billion on Friday, according to provisional exchange data. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against the basket of six currencies was trading 0.13 per cent down at 100.55.

“The rupee is presently on a bearish phase and this short term trend is likely to continue in the near future till such time the economic lockdown is lifted. In the near term rupee is likely to be in the range 20.75 – 20.85 levels,” said Krishnan Ramachandran, CEO, Barjeel Geojit Securities.

The dollar fell against the yen on Tuesday as US stock futures erased gains and traded lower in a sign some investors remain concerned about the economic shock posed by the coronavirus pandemic. The dollar fell 0.32 per cent to 108.89 yen in Asia on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar eased slightly to $1.0805. Against the save-haven Swiss franc, the greenback held steady near a two-week high of 0.9796.The dollar came into Asian trade on a positive note as risk sentiment improved after the governors of New York and New Jersey pointed to tentative signs that outbreaks in their states was starting to plateau.

The pound rose 0.17 per cent to $1.2294 on Tuesday in Asia following a 0.3 per cent decline on Monday. Against the euro, sterling held steady at 88.13 pence. The yen edged higher against the euro and held steady against the antipodean currencies, but analysts cautioned against reading too much into the yen’s rise because volumes are falling as more traders and corporate customers work from home.

The Australian dollar edged up 0.5 per cent against its U.S. counterpart, while the New Zealand dollar also rose 0.5 per cent against the greenback as investors felt more comfortable buying currencies sensitive to risk The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to keep policy on hold at a meeting today after it already slashed interest rates and embarked on quantitative easing.

With inputs from PTI, Khaleej Times, Reuters

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Dear Customer,

We always believe that your health both physical and financial is our real wealth and in challenging times like these we feel it our duty to remain connected with you at all times.

The COVID 19, as you are well aware, has emerged as the global pandemic affecting the lives of people and economies.

I would like to inform you about the strategies that J&K Bank has adopted to counter the impact of COVID 19 by taking proactive steps to safeguard all physical & financial assets and to protect the interests of all stakeholders including our valuable customers.

The well-thought-out Business Continuity Plan (BCP) is already in place to address the disruptions in the banking ecosystem and the newly formulated Quick Response Team (QRT) led by the senior management under the guidance of the Chairman & MD of the bank has already swung into action for ensuring uninterrupted banking services to all customers. In addition to sensitizing our staff through evolving advisories in line with the protocols issued by World Health Organization (WHO) and government agencies, measures are taken to ensure safety of all stakeholders. We are sanitizing and fumigating our branch premises and other touch-points frequently besides providing access to effective hand sanitizers across all operational locations.

It is in the spirit of conducting this ‘Zimmedar Banking’ at all our delivery points, we would like you to cooperate with us for a better and safer banking experience as most of your banking needs can be safely and swiftly met through our best-in-class digital platforms and solutions. Your bank has digital channels like Internet Banking, Mobile Apps, BHIM (UPI & Aadhar Pay), IMPS and Credit cards, Debit Cards which enable you to access your accounts anytime and from anywhere. Of particular significance is our mobile app m-Pay that offers a host of services from basic transactions like money transfer within the J&K Bank to other banks through IMPS, NEFT to complex transactions like electricity bill payment, cheque stop and debit card hot listing besides keeping you informed about all the details regarding your accounts from savings to loan accounts.

J&K Bank family is thankful to you for your unflinching cooperation, trust and support that has enabled the J&K Bank to remain the leading financial institution in the region with more than 2500 delivery points (Branches+ ATMs + CDMs) across the country offering best-in-class spectrum of banking and financial services.
Let me conclude by reiterating that your health is our true wealth and we deeply value your trust and confidence. Times like these are not new to us as we have successfully sailed through many ups and downs together and are confident to overcome the present challenging times in a better and stronger way.

Keep on using our digital banking solutions and let you and your dear ones stay safe from all scares.

With Best wishes,

R K Chhibber
Chairman & MD
J&K Bank