Sensex, Nifty end flat in choppy trade

BSE Sensex ended marginally higher in see-saw trade today, helped by a late buying spell in pharma, energy and banking stocks amid lacklustre global cues.

Investors were not keen to expand their portfolios ahead of the corporate earnings season, brokers said.

The 30-share index, moving in a tight range for the better part of the session on scattered deals, hit a low of 33,501.37 and a high of 33,697.51 before finishing at 33,626.97 points, up 30.17 points or 0.09 per cent.

The gauge had soared almost 578 points in the previous session after the RBI kept the policy rate unchanged but
said growth will rebound this fiscal amid softening inflation.

The broader NSE Nifty inched up 6.45 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 10,331.60. Intra-day, it shuttled between 10,290.85 and 10,350.45.

On a weekly basis, the BSE Sensex scored a smart gain of 658.29 points, or 1.99 per cent while the NSE Nifty rose 217.90 points, or 2.15 per cent.

Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities to the tune of Rs 615.28 crore yesterday, while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) net sold shares worth Rs 108.02 crore, according to provisional data.

Asian and Europe markets were flat as investors monitored the trade war situation after US President Donald Trump proposed more tariffs on China.