MUMBAI– Indian equity markets closed with marginal gains on Wednesday following a choppy session, as investors weighed mixed corporate earnings and uncertainty surrounding a potential India-U.S. trade agreement.
The BSE Sensex recovered from early losses to finish at 82,634.48, up 63.57 points or 0.08%. The broader NSE Nifty also posted a modest gain, ending at 25,212.05—up 16.25 points or 0.06%.
“The Nifty continues to face resistance at the crucial level of 25,260, which represents the 38.20% Fibonacci retracement of the recent decline from 25,669. This reflects investor indecision at higher levels,” said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
“However, the index has been holding above its 50-day moving average on the daily chart, suggesting a positive short-term trend,” he added.
On the Sensex, top laggards included Eicher Motors, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, and Bajaj Finance, all falling up to 1.6%.
Meanwhile, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, State Bank of India, Infosys, and Adani Ports led the gainers’ list.
In the broader market, the NSE Midcap 100 index closed flat with a slight positive tilt, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 inched up 0.03%.
Among sectoral indices, Nifty PSU Bank was the standout performer, rising 1.81%. Notable gainers included Punjab National Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Canara Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, SBI, Indian Bank, and Union Bank—all posting gains above 1%.
Other sectors such as IT, auto, banking, energy, FMCG, real estate, oil & gas, and consumer durables also closed in the green. However, financial services, metals, and pharmaceuticals ended the day in negative territory.
The India VIX, a measure of market volatility, declined 2.09% to settle at 11.24, signaling relatively calm investor sentiment.
The Indian Rupee saw notable intraday volatility, initially weakening against a stronger U.S. dollar before recovering mid-session amid increased dollar supply. This followed a three-day consolidation phase in the USD-INR pair, which ranged between 85.70 and 86.05.
“The outlook remains favorable for the dollar, bolstered by expectations of a hawkish Federal Reserve stance following the latest U.S. inflation data, and ongoing uncertainty over India-U.S. trade negotiations,” said Dilip Parmar of HDFC Securities.
“In the near term, we expect the USD-INR pair to trade within the 85.50 to 86.30 range,” he added. (Source: IANS)
