Stock Markets Today: Fresh COVID-19 fear snaps 6-day gaining streak All you need to know

Indian stock markets declined as a new strain of coronavirus in the UK created panic among the investors. Indian stock markets plunged by 3% on December 21, wiping out the gains of the last six sessions as a new strain of Covid-19 in parts of the United Kingdom dampened investor sentiment. The Sensex plunged by 3% or 1,407 points to 45,554. The Nifty tumbled by 3.1% or 432 points to 13,328. All the sectoral indices tumbled by 3-7% each. Indian rupee ended 21 paise lower at 73.78 per dollar, amid huge selling seen in the domestic equity market. The market breadth was in favour of decline with an advance-decline ratio of 1:9. BSE Midcap was down 736 points (over 4%) closing at 17065 and BSE Smallcap closed at 16957 down 812 points over 4.5%.

Aviation stocks, InterGlobe Aviation dipped by 8.71% to Rs. 1,507.10 and SpiceJet fell by 10% to Rs. 91.45, after India suspended flights from the UK till December 31 as the country entered a tougher lockdown to fight a new strain of coronavirus.

Global signals:

European markets plunged on December 21, as investors monitored a fast-spreading new variant of the coronavirus that has shut down much of the UK.
Asian markets declined on December 21, as news of a US stimulus agreement was overshadowed by surging virus cases and the imposition of a strict lockdown in England, while the pound was also hit by fears over stuttering Brexit talks.

After a consolidation in the first half of the session, the Nifty witnessed sharp selling pressure in the second half. The selling pressure aggravated as the index breached the key hourly moving averages as well as a rising trendline. Both these parameters were providing support in the case of minor-degree dips in the last few sessions. Also, on the way down, Nifty has broken the swing low of 13399, thus violating the higher top higher bottom formation on the daily chart. All these observations suggest that the short-term trend has turned in favour of the bears. The index can plunge towards the junction of the lower end of a reverse rising channel and the daily lower Bollinger Band of 12800 in the short-term.

Other technical observations:

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On the daily chart, the Nifty is above the 20-day moving average (DMA) and the 40-DEMA, i.e.13314 and 12913, respectively. The momentum indicator is bearish on the daily chart. On the hourly chart, the Nifty is below the 20-hour moving average (HMA) and the 40-HEMA, i.e.13668 and 13601, respectively. The hourly momentum indicator is bearish. The market breadth was negative with 254 advances and 1687 declines on the National Stock Exchange