Sensex, Nifty end lower, all eyes on US Fed policy

Benchmark Sensex settled with losses in highly a volatile session on Wednesday as investors booked profits ahead of US Federal Reserve's policy outcome.

The 30-share BSE index swung nearly 581 points on alternate bouts of buying and selling.

Investors were also cautious in view of the expiry of September derivative contracts Thursday, brokers said.

The Sensex touched a high of 36,938.74 at the outset after domestic investors pressed on with buying. However, it soon turned choppy and hit a low of 36,357.93. It finally closed lower by 109.79 points, or 0.30 per cent, at 36,542.27.

The gauge had soared 347.04 points Tuesday on value-buying in banking and FMCG stocks after recent heavy losses.

The NSE Nifty closed lower by 13.65 points, or 0.12 per cent, at 11,053.80. Intra-day, it shuttled between 11,145.55 and 10,993.05.

Brokers said investor sentiment turned choppy on selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) ahead of the September month derivatives expiry on Thursday.

On a net basis, FIIs sold shares worth Rs 1,231.70 crore Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares to the tune of Rs 2,284.26 crore, as per provisional data.

Investors also awaited policy cues from the US Federal Reserve, which is widely expected to raise interest rates.

Meanwhile, India's economy continues on a robust growth path, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Wednesday while maintaining the growth forecast for the current fiscal at 7.3 per cent.