Share Market Today: The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Wednesday closed flat amid a choppy session. The 30-share BSE Sensex settled at 81,785, rising 74 points. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 closed at 25,052, up 35 points. It scaled a record high of 25,130 during intraday trade.
Stock update
On the 30-share Sensex platform, Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, Infosys, Sun Pharma, M&M, Bajaj Finance emerged gainers. On the down side, Asian Paints, Maruti, Nestle, Axis Bank, UltraCemco, SBI were among the losers.
In the broader market, Nifty Midcap 100 dipped 0.12 per cent.
Sectoral update
Sectorwise, IT stocks gained, with the Nifty IT index ending higher by 1.64 per cent. Pharma and Healthcare closed in the green, rising 1.20 per cent. The other stocks ended in the red.
In the previous session on Tuesday, the BSE Sensex closed at 81,712, rising 14 points, while the NSE Nifty50 ended 7 points higher at 25,018.
"The market has entered a consolidation phase with low volatility and this trend is likely to continue in the near-term. Falling bond yields in the US have restrained FII selling and they have even turned marginal buyers. Going by previous trends, DIIs are likely to sell if FIIs continue to buy. This trend will keep the market within a range with a slight upward bias. This is a desirable and healthy trend, given the elevated valuations in the market," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said.
Global update
In Asian markets, Seoul, and Tokyo settled higher, while Shanghai and Hong Kong ended lower. European markets were trading in positive territory. The US markets ended with marginal gains on Tuesday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 1,503.76 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 604.08 crore.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.82 per cent to $78.90 a barrel.
Rupee slips 3 paise
The rupee depreciated 3 paise to close at 83.96 (provisional) against the American currency on Wednesday, amidst strong dollar demand from importers particularly oil companies. Forex traders said a positive trend in domestic equities, foreign fund inflows and overnight decline in crude oil prices cushioned the downside.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.94 and touched an intra-day low of 83.97 against the US dollar.
The domestic currency finally settled at 83.96 (provisional), 3 paise lower from its previous close. On Tuesday, the rupee depreciated by 6 paise to close at 83.93 against the American currency.