Sensex, Nifty ended marginally higher on Thursday, reducing most of their intra-day gains, as investors turned cautious ahead of the quarterly results of IT behemoths TCS and Infosys later in the day.
The BSE Sensex, a 30-share index, inched up by 0.09 per cent, or 63.47 points, to settle at 71,721.18, after peaking at 71,999.47 during the day. Nifty rose by 0.13 per cent, adding 28.50 points to reach 21,647.20.
Major gainers among Sensex constituents included Reliance Industries, UltraTech Cement, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, Power Grid, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, and Tata Consultancy Services. Conversely, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, Wipro, Larsen & Toubro, and Nestle witnessed declines.
Market sentiments were influenced by the impending release of US inflation data and domestic macroeconomic figures, prompting investors to adopt a cautious stance. Asian markets exhibited mixed trends, with Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong closing higher, while Seoul ended lower. Meanwhile, European markets traded higher, and the US markets closed positively on the previous day.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, attributed the cautious trading to expectations of US inflation easing, although global markets, anticipating a 2024 interest rate cut, had already factored in optimism. Additionally, concerns about premium valuations and profit booking amid moderating Q3 corporate earnings played a role.
“In anticipation of inflation data from the US, the Indian market exhibited range-bound trade. Though investors anticipate US inflation to ease, global markets, expecting a CY24 interest rate cut, have already priced in optimism. Profit booking occurred amid moderating Q3 corporate earnings and concerns about premium valuations,” said Nair.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, experienced a 1.56 per cent increase, reaching USD 78 per barrel. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers on Wednesday, offloading equities valued at Rs 1,721.35 crore. In the preceding session, the BSE benchmark closed 0.38 per cent higher at 71,657.71, while the Nifty advanced by 0.34 per cent to 21,618.70 points.
