Sensex, Nifty close almost unchanged in choppy trade; IT shares decline

Mumbai (PTI): Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed on a flat note in a choppy session on Wednesday as gains in PSU banks and auto shares were offset by losses in IT stocks.

In a range-bound trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex slipped 40.28 points, or 0.05 per cent, to close at 84,233.64. During the day, it hit a high of 84,487.34 and a low of 84,081.25.

The NSE Nifty inched up 18.70 points, or 0.07 per cent, to settle at 25,953.85.

Among the 30 Sensex firms, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Eternal, ITC, Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, UltraTech Cement, Titan, Adani Ports, Bajaj Finserv and Tata Steel were among the laggards.

On the other hand, State Bank of India, Maruti Suzuki India, IndiGo, Trent, Reliance Industries, NTPC, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Hindustan Unilever, and Bharat Electronics Ltd were among the gainers.

"Domestic equities may enter a brief consolidation phase following this week's strong rally driven by the US-India trade deal. Market attention has shifted back to mixed Q3 results, upcoming monthly inflation data, and finer details of the trade agreement, which is reportedly nearing finalisation," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.

He added that strength in the auto and healthcare sectors reflects better-than-expected earnings, while IT underperformed amid a global selloff linked to AI-related volatility. Broader markets lagged, with Midcap and Smallcap indices posting modest declines.

"Globally, sentiment stayed cautious due to weak US retail sales and persistent AI-related disruptions, keeping investors risk-averse ahead of key US employment data.

"Meanwhile, domestic markets have begun to benefit from improving FII flows, which have turned positive and are expected continue due to upside in GDP forecast and moderation in India's valuations," Nair said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Hong Kong's Hang Seng, and Shanghai's SSE Composite index ended higher. Japanese markets were closed on account of National Foundation Day.

European markets were trading mostly lower in mid-session deals. The US equities market ended lower on Tuesday.

Brent Crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.44 per cent to USD 69.78 per barrel.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 69.45 crore on Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors outpaced the FIIs, by acquiring stocks worth Rs 1,174.21 crore, according to exchange data.

On Tuesday, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 208.17 points to close at 84,273.92, while the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 67.85 points to finish at 25,935.15.