Domestic equity markets opened on a flat note on Wednesday morning. The Indian benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, failed to carry on the momentum from the previous trading session and began markets on a muted note today morning.
Around 9:36 AM, the Sensex managed to remain above the 75,200 mark, but slipped nearly 60 points, while the NSE Nifty50 traded at 22,825.25, clocking a marginal dip of 9 points.
However, as the session progressed, the indices managed to return to green and traded in the positive territory. As of 9:58 AM, the Sensex climbed almost 75 points and stood above 75,350, while the Nifty traded over 22,850, logging gains of 33 points.
On the 30-share Sensex platform, Zomato, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, IndusInd Bank, and NTPC emerged among the gainers in the session so far. Meanwhile, the laggards included TCS, Infosys, HCL, Tech M, and Sun Pharma.
In the broader markets, the Nifty Microcap 250 index dominated in green and traded 1.76 per cent higher. Sectorally, the Midsmall Financial Services and Financial Services Ex-Bank indices surged 1.68 per cent and 1.40 per cent respectively. On the other hand, the IT index drove the laggards and plunged 1.62 per cent in the morning hours.
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Macro Indicators
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong were trading in the positive territory, while Shanghai remained lower. The US markets ended in the negative zone on Tuesday.
Notably, the Federal Reserve in the US is expected to share its decision on the benchmark interest rates later today. Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) opted to maintain the status quo on key rates citing concerns about the potential impact from escalating trade tensions on the global economy.
Official exchange data revealed that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) changed their stance and became net buyers of equities worth Rs 694.57 crore on Tuesday. The Indian rupee tanked 10 paise to touch 86.66 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, as the American currency index remained firm ahead of the interest rate decision expected from the US Fed. Further, concerns about developments in global trade tariffs also weighed down on the domestic unit. The global oil benchmark Brent crude slipped 0.27 per cent to touch $70.37 a barrel in futures trade.