Benchmarks trade almost flat; Nifty below 17,800 mark; breadth negative

The benchmark indices sharply pared gains and were trading almost flat in the afternoon trade. After opening at 17,923.35 mark, the Nifty 50 index sharply pared gains and was trading below the 17,800 mark. IT, FMCG and banks shares were in demand while media, realty and consumer durables stocks witnessed selling. Global cues were positive as investors digested a record rate hike by the European Central Bank and further comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 23.36 points or 0.04% to 59,711.58. The Nifty 50 index was up 0.95 points or 0.01% to 17,799.70.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.10% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.08%.

The market breadth turned negative. On the BSE, 1603 shares rose and 1778 shares fell. A total of 138 shares were unchanged.

Indusind Bank (up 2.11%), Adani Ports & SEZ (up 1.93%), Tech Mahindra (up 1.84%), Shree Cement (up 1.53%) and ONGC (up 1.37%) were top Nifty gainers.

M&M (down 1.56%), Larsen & Toubro (down 1.42%), HDFC Life Insurance (down 1.27%), Coal India (down 1.16%) and UltraTech Cement (down 1.1%) were major Nifty losers.

Global Markets:

The Dow Jones index futures rose 138 points, indicating a strong opening in the US stocks today.

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Friday. China's consumer inflation came in at 2.5% in August, lower than the 2.7% recorded in July.

The European Central Bank Thursday hiked interest rates by 0.75 percentage point, raising its deposit to 0.75% from zero, in a largely expected move to tamp down inflation. The bank said it expects more hikes ahead because inflation may rise further in the near term. The central bank noted that the economy was expected to stagnate later in the year.

US stocks rose Thursday after moving between gains and losses as Wall Street weighed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the central bank will do what it takes to fight inflation. He also signaled that a pause in rate hikes or a pivot to cutting interest rates is not coming soon.

Meanwhile, world leaders offered tributes to Queen Elizabeth II, after Britain's longest-serving monarch died Thursday at age 96.

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