Mumbai, March 12: With JP Morgan claiming corornavirus effect on Indian exports and tourism could be 70-80 basis points (bps) at a minimum, Reserve Bank of India on Thursday said that they are taking all necessary measures to ensure that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Indian economy are mitigated. Adding on, the RBI even mentioned that they have decided to undertake 6-month US Dollar sell or buy swaps to provide liquidity to the foreign exchange market.

Issuing a press release to help boost confidence of investers in the Indian markets, RBI said through a press release, "On a review of current financial market conditions and taking into consideration the requirement of US Dollars in the market, it has been decided to undertake 6-month US Dollar sell/buy swaps to provide liquidity to the foreign exchange market. The swaps will be conducted through the auction route in multiple tranches. The auctions will be multiple price based, i.e., successful bids will be accepted at their respective quoted premiums." Coronovirus Impact on Indian Economy: GDP to Decline by Atleast 70-80 BPS, COVID-19 Playing Adverse Effect on Stocks, Says JPMorgan. 

RBI even claimed that measures are taken to ensure financial markets and institutions in India continue to function normally. The apex bank said, "The Reserve Bank of India is closely and continuously monitoring the rapidly evolving global situation and spillovers. It stands ready to take all necessary measures to ensure that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Indian economy are mitigated, and financial markets and institutions in India continue to function normally." Till March 6, 2020, the level of forex reserves at USD 487.24 billion to meet any exigency, added RBI.

Here's the tweet by RBI:

Earlier on Thursday Sensex recorded the worst fall since 2008, by ending almost 3,000 points at 32,778 down. Also, Nifty, on the other hand, ended the Thursday session at 9,590, down 868 points (8.30 percent). With this, investers claim that Dalal Street mayhem wiped off wealth worth over Rs 10 lakh crore today.

Meanwhile, JPMorgan economist Sajjid Chinoy said that Reserve Bank of India's entire inflation forecast should be mark-to-market like to deal with the upcoming crisis. He said, "The RBI’s own sensitivities are every USD 10 per barrel move in crude pushes consumer price index (CPI) down by 30 bps. So if this sustains, that will create a huge downward bias plus there will be growth markdowns, both for India and globally. So the future inflation forecast clearly opens up some space for easing. We expect there will be a 25-40 bps cut either at the April review or before that." Sensex Records Worst Fall Since 2008, Tanks 2,919 Points, Nifty at 9,590, Dalal Street Witnesses Bloodbath Due to Coronavirus Pandemic.

Informing about the COVID-19 cases, Indian government on Thursday said that 73 positive cases have been reported, which includes 56 Indians and 17 foreigners. The government informed that 52 testing facilities are located across the country along with 56 sample collection centers.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 12, 2020 05:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).