D-Street bleeds; Sensex cracks nearly 4,000 points

Indian equity market continued to remain under pressure amid massive sell-off by investors who feared that the pandemic of coronavirus may cause heavy damage to the economy. Bear stranglehold persisted as the central government and various states took major steps over the weekend, including suspension of public transport such as railways, metro rail and bus services, and lockdown of 75 districts across the country to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.

The benchmark Sensex tumbled 3,934.72, or 13.15%, to end at 25,981.24 points, while the Nifty 50 index settled 1,100.85 points, or 12.70%, lower at 7634.60.

Nifty Bank slumped more than 3,000 points, with Axis Bank falling 27.60% and becoming the biggest laggard in today's session. Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance and Zee Entertainment slipped 19-28%.