Sensex, Nifty End Marginally Lower Even As Global Risk Assets Gain

Indian equity benchmark indexes reversed solid gains in the session earlier to close marginally lower with losses coming right at the fag end on Tuesday, even as global risk assets rallied as investors paused to reassess the widespread gloom, hoping for more clarity ahead of several central bank meetings.

The 30-share BSE Sensex index fell 48.99 points to end at 59,196.99, and the broader NSE Nifty-50 Index slips 10.20 points to 17,655.60.

"As US markets were closed on Monday, local markets mostly witnessed a range-bound trend after see-sawing in early trades. Profit taking in banking & FMCG stocks saw indices finally end with marginal losses," said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research for Retail at Kotak Securities.

After two months of gains, the indices have begun September with a muted start due to lack of any significant triggers.

The Nifty Metal and Energy indexed climbed 1.3 per cent each.

Nifty Heavyweights Bajaj Finserv and Bajaj Finance fell 2.3 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively.

Hindustan Unilever, Britannia Industries, and Tata Consumer Products all had a 1.1 per cent to 2.3 per cent decline.

On the other hand, Reliance industries gained 1.1 per cent after its announced a controlling stake buy in SenseHawk, a California-based producer of solar energy software.

The Nifty 50's top percentage gainer was Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, up 3.1 per cent, and Bharti Airtel followed to be the second with shares rising 2.8 per cent.

The largest airport service aggregator in India, DreamFolks Services, debuted with a 41.8 per cent rise on its first trading day. Shares increased to a high of Rs 549 before ending at Rs 462.4, up from the issue price of Rs 326.

"Markets hit the pause button but did attract some dip-buying. Volatility was the hallmark as Nifty wobbled amidst overbought technical conditions and on backdrop of weak global cues. The positive takeaway however was that Nifty recouped most of its intraday losses to end a tad below the dotted lines," said Prashanth Tapse, Senior Vice President for Research at Mehta Equities. 

Equity benchmarks rose on Monday, defying a broader sell-off in stocks on risks for a global economy already dealing with rising inflation and a wave of monetary tightening increased as a result of Europe's increasing energy crisis.

As data pointed to a further loss of economic momentum, Chinese leaders signalled a fresh sense of urgency on Monday for moves to support a faltering economy, saying this quarter was a crucial time for policy action.

But Asian bourses faltered, with a regional equities benchmark down, while Australia announced its fourth 50 basis-point increase in interest rates and reaffirmed that it is not following a predefined course in its fight against inflation.

Following China's announcement of a reduction in the amount of foreign exchange deposits banks must hold aside as reserves, the yuan fluctuated.

After the worst week for global shares since June, US share futures climbed amid a decline in the dollar even as central banks are on a tightening monetary policy path and Europe's energy crisis continued to challenge confidence.

According to Reuters, Britain's next prime minister Liz Truss is thinking about freezing household energy costs in an effort to prevent a winter cost-of-living disaster for millions of people.

On September 9, EU ministers will meet to discuss urgent actions that must be taken at the EU level to address the spike in gas and electricity costs that has hit Europe's economy hard and increased household bills since Russia cut off gas exports to the EU.

Ahead of the policy meeting of the European Central Bank later this week, investors evaluated how leaders were responding to the region's escalating energy crisis as European markets inched up little.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose thanks to gains in the retail, car, and travel sectors, while energy lagged as the oil price rally slowed.

S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts both saw gains of above 0.5 per cent. After Labor Day, Wall Street trade will resume later.