Indices close on a flat note on selling pressure

Of the 50 listed stocks on the Nifty50, 28 declined

MUMBAI: Benchmark equity indices, the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50 ended on a flat note on Tuesday.

The Sensex settled at 81,455, up 0.12 per cent or 99.56 points, while the Nifty50 closed at 24,857, up 0.09 per cent or 21.20 points.

Of the 50 listed stocks on the Nifty50, 28 declined, with LTIMindtree, SBI Life Insurance Company, Cipla, Sun Pharma, and Grasim Industries being the top laggards. Conversely, 22 stocks gained, led by Tata Motors, NTPC, BPCL, Power Grid Corporation, and Titan Company.

Small-cap stocks outperform

In the broader market, small-cap stocks outperformed, with the BSE Smallcap index settling at 55,411, up 0.88 per cent.

Among the sectoral indices, Nifty Auto, Consumer Durables, Oil & Gas, Realty, and Media ended higher with gains of up to 1.18 per cent. In contrast, the FMCG, Pharma, IT, Financial Services, and Healthcare indices closed in the red.

Brent crude down

Globally, West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose by 0.25 per cent to $81.03 per barrel, while Brent crude traded 0.12 per cejt lower at $85.11 per barrel in New York.

In India, crude oil prices increased by Rs13 to Rs6,784 per barrel in futures trade as participants expanded their positions due to strong spot demand.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange, crude oil for July delivery rose by Rs 13 or 0.19% to Rs 6,784 per barrel in 4,480 lots.

Analysts attributed the rise in crude oil prices in futures trade to participants increasing their bets.