Sensex and Nifty, the two key equity benchmarks, which started on a strong note, ended sharply lower following selling in bank stocks amid volatility, on Tuesday. The S&P BSE Sensex, which surged 680 points intraday, closed 31 points higher at 71,386. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50, settled at 21,545, up 32 points. The benchmark hit a high of 21,724 during intraday.
On the 30-share Sensex platform, L&T, Airtel, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, M&M emerged gainers. On the downside, Nestle, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Titan were among the losers.
In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index ended flat, while Smallcap index up 0.3 per cent.
Sectorally, except bank and FMCG, all other indices ended in the green. Nifty Bank and Financial Services indices dropped 0.5 per cent each. Auto, healthcare, capital goods, metal, power, and realty rose 0.5-2.5 per cent each.
In the previous session on Monday, the S&P BSE Sensex plunged 671 points to 71,355, while the NSE Nifty50 closed at 21,513, down 198 points.
"Positive sentiments in the Indian IT sector, fuelled by a US tech rally and demand on emerging technologies, overshadowed the anticipated muted Q3 results of the sector. Market optimism about potential softening of US inflation is driving expectations of near-term rate cuts, bolstering overall sentiment. But in-between profit-booking is emerging due to mixed cues from Asian markets as well as high valuation concerns," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
In Asian markets, Tokyo and Shanghai settled higher, while Seoul and Hong Kong ended lower. European markets were trading mostly lower. The US markets ended with significant gains on Monday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 16.03 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 1.72 per cent to $77.43 a barrel.
Meanwhile, the rupee appreciated 3 paise to close at 83.11 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday, tracking positive equity market and foreign fund inflows. Crude oil prices hovering around $77 per barrel and recent weakness in the US dollar also supported the domestic unit, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened strong at 83.07 and traded between the peak of 83.04 and the lowest level of 83.13 against the greenback during the session. It finally settled at 83.11 (provisional) against the dollar, registering a gain of 3 paise from its previous close. The domestic currency settled 1 paisa higher at 83.14 on Monday, a day after gaining 9 paise.