Sensex falls nearly 300 points ahead of Union Budget 2020-21

Shrugging off a weak start, Indian markets edged higher today ahead of Budget 2020. On BSE, benchmark index Sensex was up 80 points while Nifty was higher at 11,980. Overnight, on Wall Street stocks fell sharply amid worries that the coronavirus outbreak in China will dent global growth.

HUL was the top gainer among the Sensex stocks, up around 3%. The fast-moving consumer goods’ (FMCG) big boy clocked an underlying volume growth of 5% for the third quarter, better than many analysts’ estimates.

Manav Chopra, head of research for equity at Indiabulls Ventures, said markets had approached the Budget with caution with the absence of any rally. "Broader markets too witnessed profit booking ahead of the event. 11,800-11,900 is the near term support zone. Expect strong directional move post the Budget which could be easily 400-500 points on the Nifty. Any positive trigger in the Budget is likely to trigger a rally as no expectations are built-in. 12,250 is likely to act as a resistance zone on the upside," he said.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged over 600 points. Markets around the globe have sold off on concerns about the potential economic impact of the outbreak.

China’s stock markets will reopen on Monday after being closed since January 23 for the Lunar New Year.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a global emergency and the death toll has crossed 250 while coronavirus cases topped 11,700.