Mumbai, March 23: The Indian markets witnessed bloodbath as Sensex nosedived 4,000 points today. It is being said to be one of the worst Monday ever for the bourses. Sensex closed at 25,981, down 3,935 points (13 percent). Axis Bank tanked 27 percent, followed by IndusInd Bank and Bajaj Finance, down 23 percent each. Nifty on the other hand closed at 7,634, down 1,110 points today.

The Indian markets opened over 2,400 points in the negative on Monday morning tracking global markets, and as several states in India come under lockdown to contain the spread of the deadly virus. Sensex hit the lower circuit limit of 10 per cent and trading halted for 45 minutes. However, even after the trading resumed, the losses only got extended.

In India, state governments announced lockdown in almost 80 districts till March 31 across the country as the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases moves towards 400. The death toll in India surged to 7 on Sunday, and Maharashtra being the worst affected with a total number of 89 cases on Monday. The Health Department informed that 15 more cases found since Sunday evening, the state Health Department informed. Indian Railways suspended all train services including passenger trains, local and metro till March 31. Global Markets Bleed As Investors Remain Wary Amid COVID-19 Outbreak, Hang Seng Down 3%, Australian Stocks Tank 8%

The BSE index plunged to as low as 27,197.81 level in opening deals before bouncing back slightly. The Nifty50 index fell below the 8,000-mark but later pared some losses to hover around 8,050 zones, down 693 points, or 7.9 per cent. Bank and auto stocks were the worst-hit. Axis Bank and ICICI Bank both plunged over 10 per cent each while Maruti Suzuki India was down 9.7 per cent.

The global markets were also affected on Monday morning on the back of rising fear around coronavirus and its impact on the global economy. The Australian stocks fell around 8 percent on the back of COVID-19 fears. The Hang Seng Index dropped 5.02 percent, or 1,145.52 points, to 21,659.55 at the open. Every country across the world is trying their best to contain the spread of the deadly virus, but till now the scare around COVID-19 has not minimised looking the enormous rise in the cases and its death toll.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 23, 2020 03:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).