Indian benchmark indices lower on Wednesday with the Nifty ending below 11,500 for the first time since May 17, dragged mainly by auto, metal and PSU Bank stocks.
Meanwhile, Asian Shares were treading water as investors waited to hear whether US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell would confirm expectations for a US rate cut this month.
Investors remained cautious amid renewed concerns over trade tension between the United States and India. Ahead of the Indo-US trade talks on Friday, US President Donald Trump once again warned China that its high tariffs were not acceptable.
The Sensex ended 174 points lower at 38,557, while the broader Nifty50 index lost 57 points to end at 11,499. In broader markets, the Nifty Midcap and Nifty Smallcap index fell 1 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.
Negative sentiment also lingered on various union budget proposals like increasing the public float by 10 percent, a surcharge on foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and a 20 percent tax on buyback of securities.
Yes Bank, Coal India, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank and Kotak Bank were top gainers on the Nifty50, while Bajaj Finance, Indiabulls Housing, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Steel and BPCL led the losses.
All sectoral indices ended the day in the red. The Nifty Realty fell the most, down 1.6 percent. Meanwhile, the Nifty Metal fell 1.1 percent and the Nifty Auto and the Nifty PSU Bank declined 1 percent. The Nifty IT also lost 0.56 percent and the Nifty FMCG fell 0.6 percent. The Nifty Fin Services, the Nifty Bank and the Nifty Pvt Bank indices were also in the red.
InterGlobe Aviation, the parent of IndiGo, fell 11 percent after promoters Rahul Bhatia and Rakesh Gangwal made serious allegations against each other, seeking intervention from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).
Tata Consultancy Services was also down 1 percent after Mumba-based company reported lower quarterly margins.
Tata Motors shares fell over 2 percent after Jaguar Land Rover reported double-digit fall in June sales.
Bajaj Finance shares fell 5 percent as Morgan Stanley said it sees 18 percent downside from current levels despite strong loan growth in Q1.
Globally, MSCI’s broadest index of world stocks was little changed after three days of losses. Japan's Nikkei had also finished lower and Chinese blue chips barely budged as data showed inflation remained subdued.
