Sensex, Nifty End Little Changed Ahead Of US Inflation Data
(RTTNews) - Indian shares moved in a narrow range before finishing on a flat note Wednesday. A cautious undertone prevailed as investors awaited key U.S. inflation data due out later in the day that could offer clues on the Fed's next move on interest rates.
Rising tensions between China and the United States following last week's trip by Nancy Pelosi, and a sell-off of global tech stocks following disappointing earnings and projections from big U.S. tech firms like Nvidia and Micron also kept investors on the sidelines.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex cut early losses to end down 35.78 points, or 0.06 percent, at 58,817.29 while the broader NSE Nifty index finished 9.65 points higher at 17,534.75.
Metal stocks rallied, with Hindalco climbing 4.4 percent after the company reported its highest ever quarterly profit in Q1, driven by an excellent performance by Novelis and a robust performance by Aluminum Downstream and Copper businesses. Tata Steel and Coal India both rose about 2 percent.
Tata Chemicals soared 12 percent on strong Q1 earnings, with quarterly consolidated net profit surging 86 percent, largely on the back of higher realization.
Bajaj Finance led losses to close 2.6 percent lower followed by ONGC, HCL Technologies, Adani Ports and Asian Paints.
SpiceJet plunged 5.6 percent after reports that at least three lenders have put its account under the "high-risk category."