The Nifty50 index ended 18 points or 0.10% lower at 17,896, while S&P BSE Sensex fell 10 points or 0.02% to settle at 60,105.
From the Sensex pack, Bharti Airtel and HUL were the top losers, falling over 2%.
, Reliance, , , and also closed lower. On the other hand, , , L&T, , and closed with gains.
Sector-wise, the Nifty FMCG fell 1.13% and Nifty Healthcare declined 0.81%. Bank, financial, metal and IT stocks closed higher. In the broader market, Nifty Midcap50 ended flat and Smallcap50 surged 0.22%.
“The Nifty received support on the downside as it approached the lower end of the pattern. 17,800 is a key support on the downside. Unless that breaks on a closing basis, the index is expected to witness recovery once again. On the higher side, the immediate hurdle is at 18,000 beyond which it can test 18,100-18,150 in the short term,” said Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by
.
Global Markets
Asian equities edged higher on Wednesday, while the dollar steadied as investors braced for US inflation data that will influence the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.28% higher, while Japan’s Nikkei gained 1%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.80%.
The FTSE 100 was last up 0.6% while the broader STOXX 600 pan-regional index gained 0.5%, staying a touch below the May 2022 highs hit on Monday. So far this year, these indices are up 3.9% and 5.4%, respectively.
Currency Watch
The Indian rupee advanced against the dollar on Wednesday, helped by increased speculative activity after the local currency moved above key technical levels.
The rupee last traded at 81.57 per dollar, up from 81.78 in the previous session and its highest level in more than a month.
Crude Impact
Oil prices were broadly steady on Wednesday as market participants were pulled in different directions by an unexpected build in US crude and fuel inventories, global economic uncertainty and China reopening its economy.
Brent crude March futures surged 0.35% to $80.35 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased 0.17% to $75.26 a barrel.
(With inputs from agencies)
