Mumbai: Equity benchmarks declined in initial trade on Thursday after a two-day rally, in line with a weak trend in global markets. Also, a weak trend in index major Reliance Industries and IT counters added to the pressure. After a weak beginning, the 30-share BSE Sensex fell by 341 points, ending at 57,873.59. The broader NSE Nifty declined by 97.8 points to settle at 17,054.10.
The 30-share BSE benchmark advanced by 139.91 points or 0.24 percent, settling at 58,214.59 on Wednesday. The Nifty climbed 44.40 points or 0.26 percent to end at 17,151.90. Foreign Portfolio Investors turned buyers on Wednesday as they bought equities worth Rs 61.72 crore, according to exchange data.
Among the Sensex stocks, Asian Paints, Wipro, HCL Technologies, Infosys, Reliance Industries, HDFC, Power Grid, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the biggest laggards. Tata Motors, Nestle, Larsen & Toubro, and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers.
In Asia, Seoul, Japan, and Shanghai markets were trading lower, while Hong Kong quoted in the green. The US markets had ended sharply lower on Wednesday. Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped by 0.91 percent to USD 75.99 per barrel.
"Markets may witness a cautious start with the bias tilted towards bears amid weakness in the overnight US markets after the Fed increased interest rate by 25 basis points, which came as per the street expectations," said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, in his pre-market opening quote.
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