NIFTY50 trades flat, SENSEX above 76,700 level in range-bound session; small-cap stocks outperform

The Indian stock market on Wednesday, April 16, was trading positively in a volatile session during the afternoon period. The Asian peers, however, were all trading negatively.

At 12:26 PM, the S&P BSE SENSEX was trading 48.34 points, or 0.06%, higher at the 76,783.23 level, while NSE’s NIFTY50 was at the 23,354.40 level, rising 25.85 points, or 0.11%.

The broader market, however, was outperforming, with the Nifty Smallcap 100 soaring 1.03% to the 16,346.75 level and the Nifty Midcap 100 at the 52,307.15 level, gaining 0.64%.

Among sectors, Nifty PSU Bank was the top gainer, rising 2.03%, followed by Nifty Private Bank, Nifty Midsmall Financial Services, Nifty Media and Nifty Oil and Gas.

Nifty Auto, Nifty Metal and Nifty IT were among the losing sectors, declining as much as 0.30%.

IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, Trent, HDFC Life and Eicher Motors were the most contributing stocks on the NIFTY50 index, jumping as much as 5.44%.

Maruti Suzuki, Hindalco, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Auto and Shriram Finance were the biggest laggards, falling as much as 1.81% on the 50-share index.

Meanwhile, the rupee stayed firm and appreciated 26 paise to 85.54 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday on the back of a massive inflow of foreign capital, a weak American currency and lower crude oil prices.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened strong at 85.66 and gained further to trade at 85.54 against the greenback in initial deals, 26 paise higher from the previous closing level.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹6,065.78 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to exchange data.