Sensex down by 1 pc amid fear of second wave of COVID-19 cases in China

Equity benchmark indices dived during early hours on Monday tracking weak Asian markets as fear of the second wave of COVID-19 related cases in China sparked worries among investors that it will delay the economic recovery.

At 10:15 am, the BSE SandP Sensex was down by 363 points or 1.07 per cent at 33,418 while the Nifty 50 edged lower by 94 points or 0.94 per cent at 9,879.

Sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were mixed with Nifty private bank down by 1.9 per cent and pharma up by 1.2 per cent.

Among stocks, private banks were in the red with IndusInd Bank down by 4.2 per cent at Rs 506.35 per share.

Axis Bank slipped by 2 per cent, ICICI Bank by 1.9 per cent, Kotak Mahindra Bank by 1.8 per cent and HDFC Bank by 1.7 per cent.