Profit booking ahead of the fourth quarter results season and the upcoming macro-economic data points depressed the Indian equity markets on Wednesday.
Besides, rising geo-political tensions, rupee depreciation and foreign funds' outflow eroded investors' appetite for risk taking.
The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) dipped by 33.55 points or 0.36 per cent to 9,203.45 points.
The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE closed lower by 144.87 points or 0.49 per cent.
The S&P BSE Sensex, which opened at 29,838.82 points, closed at 29,643.48 points from Tuesday's close at 29,788.35 points.
The Sensex touched a high of 29,838.82 points and a low of 29,549.74 points during the intra-day trade.
The BSE market breadth was bearish -- with 1,756 declines and 1,114 advances.
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Similarly, broader markets ended the day's trade on a lower note. The S&P BSE mid-cap index fell by 0.22 per cent, while the small-cap index closed lower by 0.49 per cent.
"Markets ended lower on Wednesday after a volatile session reversing some of the previous day's gains," Deepak Jasani, Head - Retail Research, HDFC Securities, told IANS.
"Investors indulged in profit taking ahead of the IIP and CPI numbers due on Wednesday evening and beginning of the earnings season tomorrow."
India's Central Statistics Office (CSO) will release the macro-economic data points -- Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and Consumer Price Index (CPI) -- after the market hours on Wednesday.
In terms of quarterly results, IT major Infosys is expected to be the first blue chip firm to come out with its Q4 results on April 13, Thursday.
"Major Asian markets have ended on a mixed note. European indices like FTSE 100, DAX and CAC 40 were trading higher," Jasani said.
According to Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, while Asian markets shrugged off negative cues from geo-political tensions, the southern China integration plans shored up sentiments, helping Indian stocks to recover from early losses.
However, on the currency front, the Indian rupee weakened by 18 paise to 64.68 against a US dollar from its previous close of 64.49-50 to a greenback.
In terms of investments, provisional data with the exchanges showed that the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold scrip worth Rs 580.70 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased scrip worth Rs 701.12 crore.Commenting on the sector specific movement, Dhruv Desai, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls, said that pharma sector stocks witnessed healthy upside momentum during the trade session lead by Sun Pharma and Glenmark.
"Along with pharma, realty remained top performing sector on positive side," Desai pointed out.
Sector-wise, the S&P BSE consumer durables index plunged by 157.14 points, the automobile index receded by 101.05 points, and the metal index edged lower by 77.81 points.
On the other hand, healthcare index surged by 95.23 points.
Major Sensex gainers on Wednesday were: Sun Pharma, up 1.83 per cent at Rs 682.80; Hero MotoCorp, up 0.77 per cent at Rs 3,226.15; Lupin, up 0.74 per cent at Rs 1,439; Bajaj Auto, up 0.55 per cent at Rs 2,837.95; and Dr Reddy's Lab, up 0.48 per cent at Rs 2,642.80.
Major Sensex losers were: Tata Steel, down 2.12 per cent at Rs 477.95; Adani Ports, down 2.06 per cent at Rs 327.55; Wipro, down 1.76 per cent at Rs 501; Gail, down 1.72 per cent at Rs 378.10; and Tata Motors, down 1.60 per cent at Rs 465.20.
--IANS
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