Sensex plunges 1,011 pts after oil price crash sparks global sell-off

Mumbai: Equity benchmark Sensex on Tuesday sank over 1,011 points on heavy losses in banking, IT and auto counters as historic oil plunge brought more unease into markets already reeling from coronavirus crisis.

After hitting a low of 30,378.26, the 30-share index ended 1,011.29 points or 3.20 per cent lower at 30,636.71.

Similarly, the NSE Nifty plummeted 280.40 points, or 3.03 per cent, to 8,981.45.

IndusInd Bank was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, sinking over 12 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, M&M, Tata Steel, ONGC and Maruti.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, Hero MotoCorp and Nestle India were the gainers.

According to traders, domestic market plunged following selloff in global equities as rout in crude market hit investor sentiment world over.

US benchmark oil West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for May delivery recovered to USD 1.10 a barrel.

With space to store oil scarce, WTI for May delivery plunged to – USD 37.63 a barrel ahead of Tuesday's close for futures contracts -- when traders who buy and sell the commodity for profit would have had to take physical posession of it.

Brent crude contracts for June delivery was trading 20.30 per cent lower at USD 20.38 per barrel.

On Wall Street, stocks crashed after US oil prices turned negative on Monday for the first time ever.

Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended with significant losses.

Stock exchanges in Europe were also trading up to 2 per cent lower.

Further, concerns over mounting Covid-19 cases also kept investors jittery, traders said.

The death toll due to the pandemic rose to 590, while the number of cases in the country climbed to 18,601.

Global tally of the infections has crossed 24.7 lakh, with over 1.70 lakh deaths.

The rupee, meanwhile, settled for the day lower by 30 paise at 76.83 (provisional) against the US dollar.