After opening the day in green, share markets in India witnessed volatile trading activity throughout the day and ended the day on a dull note. Losses were seen across most sectors with stocks in the metals sector and stocks in the realty sector, leading the losses. While stocks in the IT sector gained the most.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood lower by 72 points (down 0.2%) and the NSE Nifty closed down by 41 points (down 0.4%). The BSE Mid Cap index ended the day down by 1.7%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended the day lower by 2.2%.

Meanwhile, Asian stock markets finished in green. As of the most recent closing prices, the Hang Seng was up by 1.8% and the Shanghai Composite was up by 0.8%. The Nikkei 225 was up by 1%. European markets were trading on a positive note. The FTSE 100 was up by 0.2%. The DAX too, was down by 0.7% while the CAC 40 was up by 0.3%.

The rupee was trading at Rs 64.07 against the US$ in the afternoon session. Oil prices were trading at US$ 64.4 at the time of writing.

In news from global cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin prices have been in a freefall and fell by over 15% in today’s trade. While Bitcoin prices are indeed volatile, this development comes after news reports of governments and regulators seeking to ban and control bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin is down over 20% in one week after news reports suggested that the South Korean government is intensifying its moves against the country’s bitcoin exchanges.

In a recent development, it was reported that authorities in China were planning to block domestic access to Chinese and offshore cryptocurrency platforms that allow centralized trading. Regulators will also target people and companies that provide market-making, settlement and clearing services for centralized trading.

The current price action takes bitcoin to its lowest levels since December 2017.