| News Announcement |
Impact Analysis |
| Coronavirus cases cross 6 lakh afflictions worldwide |
- The virus has already resulted in 27,000 deaths worldwide with Italy accounting for a third of the casualties
- While the virus had its origins in China, it is Europe that appears to have become the epicenter of the pandemic
|
| Dow Jones lost 900 points on Friday after an encouraging week |
- There was panic in Wall Street after the number of active COVID-19 cases in the US crossed a record 100,000
- The fall was on the back of growth pessimism despite the US government infusing over $2 trillion to boost the economy
|
| Moody’s slashes India’s 2020 growth estimate from 5.3% to 2.5% |
- This move comes even as CRISIL has downgraded India’s estimated GDP growth for FY20 to just 3.5%
- These assumptions are typically factoring in negative growth in the March quarter and flat growth in June quarter
|
| Finance Minister announces helicopter payouts for the BPL families |
- The policy includes assured payouts to BPL families as well as the provision of free food grains during the lock-in period
- In addition, the FM has also assured that health workers would get health cover to the tune of Rs.50 lakhs floater
|
| RBI cuts repo rates by 75 bps in an urgently convened MPC meeting |
- The RBI surprised the street by cutting rates by 75 bps to stave off any immediate risk of recession
- In addition, the RBI has also cut the CRR by 100 basis points to 3% releasing another Rs.1.37 trillion in the process
|
| RBI offers 3-month moratorium to business loans and personal loans |
- This will not be an across-the-board waiver but contingent on bank approval after an application is made by the customer
- However, RBI has clarified that any extension of payment terms will be subject to interest accrual during the period
|
| Tata Motors to convert its passenger vehicle business into a separate entity |
- The entity will be a subsidiary of Tata Motors and will house the PV business and the electrical vehicles business
- The company estimates that a distinct management approach will help in getting SOTP valuation for Tata Motors
|
| Global refiners are cutting down capacity as demand compresses |
- With most of the major countries facing a lockdown, the demand for oil has suddenly fallen to a new low
- This has forced refiners to cut production and even invoke Force Majeure clauses with oil extractors to stay afloat
|
| US economy faces the worst rise in jobless claims in the previous week |
- The rise in jobless claims to 3.28 million is clearly an outcome of the series of lockdowns across factories and business
- This brings to an end the longest jobs boom in the US when unemployment had touched a low of just 4%
|
| Oil prices continued to be under pressure on supply and demand woes |
- On the supply side, the OPEC has ruled out any truce with Russia and will continue to flood the market with cheap oil
- On the demand side, the shutdown and the growth slowdown are having a deep impact on oil demand
|
| DSP and SBI to again start accepting inflows into their small-cap fund |
- Both these AMCs had stopped accepting fresh inflows into their small-cap fund due to high volatility
- With valuations much lower and the recent 40% correction in the BSE 250 Small Cap Index, this appears to be on track
|
| Coronavirus may have cut global oil demand by 20 million bpd |
- This is nearly 20% of the current global oil output and that is putting pressure on prices
- With major shutdowns, the demand from factories and from transport segment has come down substantially
|
| DGCA has extended the ban on international flights to April 14th |
- This ban was original till March 31st but with the pandemic nowhere under control, the extension was inevitable
- The government has already warned that this 21-day ban maybe eventually extended to 3 months if required
|
| Bernstein further downgrades price target for Bajaj Finance to Rs.1700 |
- According to Bernstein, the pain on consumer lending may continue and even NPAs could see a visible spike
- Bajaj Finance has already corrected nearly 45% in the last 2 months and now this factors another 50% downside
|
| India VIX remains at elevated above the 70 levels despite the bounce |
- After the VIX crossed the 50 levels in mid-March, it has never come below that level and even touched a high of 86
- Normally, markets show a sustained bounce only after VIX settles below the 20 levels for a sustained period of time
|
| RBI permits Indian banks to put trades in the NDF rupee market |
- The non-deliverable forward (NDF) market on rupee is quite active in centers like Dubai and Singapore
- This allows Indian banks to participate and also exercise control on the rupee trading in offshore markets
|
| Yes Bank total fundraising plans increased to Rs.15,000 crore |
- While Rs.10,000 crore has already been infused by an SBI-led consortium, Yes Bank will raise Rs.5000 core via QIPs
- However, ICRA has pointed out that Yes bank may need an additional capital infusion of Rs.10,000 crore in next 2 years
|
| Indian aviation companies to lose $3 billion due to virus; CAPA |
- These losses would arise due to canceled flights as well as most routes flying at below break-even capacity
- Domestic analysts have warned that it could create a serious solvency issue for Interglobe Aviation and Spice Jet
|
| Hindustan Unilever emerges as the third most valuable company |
- After a long time, HDFC Bank slipped out of the Top-3 position after the sharp correction in stock prices
- Hindustan Unilever has been one of the few companies to gain during the pandemic due to a hygiene rush
|
| Gems and Jewellery sector could lose close to Rs.75,000 crore |
- This would be the direct impact of the demand crunch caused by the Coronavirus over the next few months
- Most malls and jewellery shops in India are either shut or are seeing zero footfalls as the sector hopes for the rescue package
|
| Nifty locked in lower circuit for the second time in March |
- The markets got once again locked in lower 10% circuit after a similar experience on March 13th
- The fears of a slowdown in the aftermath of COVID-19 has largely driven the global investor panic across markets
|
