Mumbai, March 27: The Indian markets opened on a positive note today after FM Nirmala Sitharaman announced a coronavirus relief package for the economically weaker sections of the society. In a press conference today, RBI made some important announcements today taking into account the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. The Sensex slipped from day's high after RBI said FY20 GDP Growth of 5 percent now at risk. The Sensex closed marginally in the red at 29,815, down 131 points. Nifty on the other hand settled the day at 8,660, up 18 points.

Some of the important announcements made by the RBI governor was the reduction in the repo rate and the reverse repo rate amid the coronavirus outbreak. The repo rate has been reduced by 75 basis points from 5.15 percent to 4.4 percent. The reverse repo rate, on the other hand, has been reduced by 90 basis points to 4 percent. RBI Reduces Repo Rate by 75 Basis Points to 4.4%; Reverse Repo Rate Reduced by 90 Basis Points to 4% Amid COVID-19 Outbreak.

Talking about the global markets, the Wall Street rallied overnight despite a record number of new unemployment filings in the United States, as traders focused on the unanimous passage of a $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill in the U.S. Senate. The Dow Jones and the S&P 500 surged over 6 per cent each and the Nasdaq Composite zoomed 5.6 per cent. The United States touched a new record of having the most number of coronavirus cases, surpassing Italy and China.  The Australian shares were up 2 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei stock index rose 3.65 per cent.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 27, 2020 10:51 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).