Indian shares plunged on Monday amid a relentless surge in coronavirus cases and as the hardest-hit state of Maharashtra considers a lockdown,threatening to derail a recovery in Asia’s third-largest economy.
At 10.10 am, the NSE Nifty 50 index was down 2.48% at 14,466.25, while the S&P BSE Sensex was 2.30%, or 1,140 points lower, at 48,446.02.
Stocks across most industries declined, with financial shares being hit the hardest. HDFC Bank and HDFC were the two biggest drags on the Nifty 50, falling early 3% each.
The western state of Maharashtra, home to India’s financial capital of Mumbai, is considering a lockdown and could take a final decision this week, a senior government official said.
India’s corporate earnings season kicks off from Monday,with software services firm Tata Consultancy Services expected to report March-quarter results.
Data on the country’s retail inflation for March is also expected later in the day. A Reuters poll of economists predicts that the reading likely edged up to a four-month high in March,led by higher food and fuel prices.