Sensex, Nifty End Marginally Lower After Thursday’s Strong Rally

Indian shares fluctuated before ending marginally lower on Friday, after having surged to new record highs in the previous session.

Investors reacted to mixed industrial output and retail inflation readings and awaited a Federal Reserve interest-rate cut next week.

The FOMC meeting on September 17-18 is crucial for financial markets, with expectations leaning toward a 25-bps rate cut followed by a series of interest rate cuts before the end of the year.

CME Group’s FedWatch Tool currently suggests rates will be lower by at least a full percentage point following the Fed’s December meeting.

The benchmark S&P/BSE Sensex slid 71.77 points, or 0.09 percent, to 82,890.94 while the broader NSE Nifty index settled at 25,356.50, down 32.40 points, or 0.13 percent, from its previous close.

Coal India, ITC, HDFC Life, Adani Ports and SBI Life fell 1-2 percent in the Nifty pack while Wipro surged 3.8 percent as investors await progress on its turnaround journey.

In an internal email, the country’s third-largest technology services firm reportedly directed employees to attend office at least thrice a week or risk losing the day’s leave.

IndusInd Bank, Grasim, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj FinServ climbed 1-2 percent.

Gravita India shares soared more than 9 percent on high volumes after the lead products manufacturer announced it is acquiring a recycling plant in Romania.