Share market today: The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Wednesday closed marginally higher for the fifth consecutive session amid high volatility. The BSE Sensex rose 102 points to 80,905. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 jumped 71 points to 24,770.
Stock update
On the30-share Sensex platform, Titan, Asian Paints, HUL, Nestle, ITC, Bajaj Finserv emerged gainers. On the downside, UltraCemco, TechM, Tata Steel, PowerGrid, HDFC Bank, HCLTech were among the losers.
In the broader markets, the BSE Smallcap advanced 0.87 per cent while the BSE Midcap index gained 0.43 per cent.
Sectoral update
Sectorwise, Nifty Realty index slipped 1.3 per cent, followed by the Nifty PSU Bank index dropping 0.4 per cent. On the other hand, the Nifty Media index gained 1.2 per cent, and the Nifty Pharma added 0.9 per cent.
In the previous session on Tuesday, the BSE Sensex settled at 80,803 levels, up 378 points, while the NSE Nifty50 closed at 24,699, rising 126 points.
"The Indian market traded on a tight range with a positive bias supported by strong DII flows. While defensive sector outperformed due to a continued shift in portfolio towards FMCG, consumer, commodities, and pharma. Global markets exhibited a mildly cautious tone ahead of the release of the FOMC minutes later today. Currently, the expectation of a rate cut remains high, given the fall in US inflation and moderation in overall growth," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.
Global update
The European markets were trading higher on Wednesday. In Asian markets, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong were closed in the negative territory while Seoul ended higher on Wednesday. The US stock markets settled lower in overnight trade on Tuesday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) again turned sellers on Tuesday as they offloaded equities worth Rs 1,457.96 crore, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,252.10 crore on Tuesday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.28 per cent to $77.42 a barrel.
Rupee sinks 14 paise
The Indian rupee nosedived 14 paise to 83.91 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday amid unabated outflow of foreign capital and volatile domestic equity markets. Forex traders said a weak American currency and lower level of crude prices, however, cushioned the local unit at lower level.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 83.79 and touched the intra-day low of 83.94 against the greenback. The unit finally settled at 83.91 (provisional) against the dollar, registering a loss of 14 paise from its previous days' closing level of 83.77. The rupee settled 10 paise higher at 83.77 against the American currency on Tuesday, a day after gaining 8 paise.