Widespread disappointment over the contours of the stimulus package amid grim global cues led to the Sensex crashing 886 points on Thursday.

Expectations had soared after the Prime Minister’s announcement of a Rs 20 lakh crore relief package, but investor hopes were dashed as Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman did not come up with any measures to kickstart demand, which has suffered after the coronavirus outbreak and the nationwide lockdown.

With the government not spending much, concerns resurfaced about economic growth, sending stocks into the negative territory.

This came on a day global markets continued to be shaky after WHO’s statement that the novel coronavirus “may never go away”.

The 30-share BSE Sensex opened at 31466. 33 and crashed more than 955 points during intra-day trades to hit a low of 31052.65. Thereafter, it settled 885.72 points, or 2.77 per cent, lower at 31122.89. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty fell 240.80 points, or 2.57 per cent, to close at 9142.75.

“Day 1 of the stimulus 2.0 was underwhelming after the overwhelming announcement in the previous day. Lower direct fiscal commitment and likely lower realisation of contingent liabilities are positive for government finance. With nearly 75 per cent of the Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package already over by Day 1, the scope for any further major announcements in the next few days get reduced. This could be negative for the equity markets,’’ a note from Anand Rathi Research said.

Market circles added that investors may be in for more disappointment on Friday as the announcements made by the finance minister on Thursday did not contain any major demand boosting measures.

Tech Mahindra was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, cracking 5.24 per cent, followed by Infosys, HDFC, IndusInd Bank, Reliance Industries and NTPC. Hero MotoCorp, L&T, Maruti, UltraTech Cement and Sun Pharma led the gainers list, climbing up to 2.28 per cent.

Analysts at Jefferies said in a report that the first tranche of the package would have a minimal impact in 2020-21, even as it estimated that the fiscal cost of the measures announced on Wednesday was only to the tune of Rs 1.6 lakh crore.

“Indian benchmark indices wiped out all the previous session gains with the Nifty ending below the 9150 level because of the unenthusiastic response to the relief package announcements made on Wednesday amid weak global cues….All eyes are now on the balance two announcements by the FM over Thursday and Friday,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research, HDFC Securities.