Sensex down; RBI policy awaited

By Jessica Kuruthukulangara

Indian shares were trading lower on Wednesday after hitting fresh highs earlier in the session as investors booked profits in stocks such as Hindalco Industries Ltd amid caution ahead of the central bank's policy meet later in the day.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will likely cut its main policy rate by 25 bps to a more than 6-1/2 year low after inflation slumped, sparking pressure from the government and others to ease rates further.

Markets are at higher levels and valuations seem a little steep index-wise, so a little profit-booking is likely in mid-cap stocks, said Siddharth Sedani, head and vice president, equity advisory at Anand Rathi.

"A little bit of consolidation can be seen in the markets once the policy meet is done," he added.

The broader NSE Nifty was down 0.14 percent at 10,100.70 as of 0553 GMT, while the benchmark BSE Sensex was 0.06 percent lower at 32,555.70. Both indexes had risen in four out of the last six sessions.

Early gains were reversed as investors booked profits in stocks such as Hindalco and Vedanta Ltd , down as much as 1.4 percent each, after two consecutive sessions of gains.

Bajaj Auto Ltd was down as much as 1.3 percent after reporting a 6.7 percent fall in total sales for July.

Meanwhile, Hero MotoCorp Ltd led gains, rising as much as 3 percent to its highest since June 20 after the two-wheeler maker on Tuesday reported a 17.1 percent jump in July sales.

(Reporting by Jessica Kuruthukulangara in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair)