What changed for the market while you were sleeping? Top 10 things to know

Stay tuned to Moneycontrol to find out what happens in currency and equity markets today. We have collated a list of important headlines across news platforms which could impact Indian as well as international markets:

US Markets

The evaporation of a rally on Wall Street in the closing minutes of Tuesday’s session shows that many investors fear the U.S. stock market is in danger of a renewed tumble due to uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

Asian Markets

Asian stock futures were under pressure on Wednesday after a late, sharp sell-off on Wall Street and as oil prices slumped under pressure from swelling global supplies.

SGX Nifty

Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a negative opening for the index in India with a 159.5 points of loss. The Nifty futures were trading at 8703.50 on the Singaporean Exchange around 07:30 hours IST.

Full economic activity may resume only by September: Mark Matthews, Julius Baer

The damage to the Indian economy that the spread of COVID-19 has caused will depend on the duration of the lockdown as well as the manner in which it is withdrawn, said Mark Matthews, Head of Research, Asia, Julius Baer. "The closure of all but essential services and industry with potential extension means a complete halt in activity to approximately 75 percent of the economy for a duration of three weeks (with potential extension)," he told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interview.

“On an average, every month of lockdown results in output loss of approximately 8.5 percent of the annual total. Hence, if 75% of the economy is locked down for a month, the output loss will 6.5 percent,” Matthews said.

Retail sector's recovery hinges on government support, say experts

Retailers risk losing about 50-60 percent of turnover, and it will take around three-six months for revival, feel experts. “If somebody does a Rs 500 crore of turnover, the loss of sales is expected to be in the range of 50-60 percent, which could be around Rs 250-300 crore. This could be that deep,” said Kumar Rajagopalan, Chief Executive Officer - Retailers Association of India (RAI).

Indian Retail Industry has more than 15 million retailers, both small and big, traditional and modern trade.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs 741.77 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), too, bought shares of worth Rs 422.51 crore in the Indian equity market on April 7, provisional data available on the NSE showed. Dollar creeps higher as virus worries return

The dollar found a footing on Wednesday as investors returned to safe-havens, unwinding some risk currency gains made on hopes the coronavirus crisis in Europe and New York was slowing.

Oil prices jump as focus swivels to OPEC, Russia meeting on output cuts

Oil climbed on Wednesday, reversing most of the prior session’s losses, as investors pinned hopes on a Thursday meeting where OPEC members and allied producers will discuss output cuts to shore up prices that have tumbled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

SIDBI offers emergency credit facility of up to Rs 1 crore to SMEs

The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) on Tuesday said it will provide emergency working capital of up to Rs 1 crore to small and medium enterprises against their confirmed government orders. The new loan product, SIDBI Assistance to Facilitate Emergency response against coronavirus (SAFE) plus will be offered collateral free and disbursed within 48 hours, a release said.

Australia's parliament set to pass huge stimulus plan

Australia’s parliament will return on Wednesday in a slimmed down version to pass an emergency A$130 billion ($80 billion) stimulus package as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the country’s economy.

With inputs from Reuters & other agencies