Sensex, Nifty turn choppy in volatile trade

Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty opened on a choppy note on Wednesday tracking losses in financial stocks amid mixed cues from global markets as investors turned cautious after the first US presidential debate.

After opening in the positive territory, the 30-share index turned volatile and was trading 49.01 points or 0.13 per cent lower at 37,924.21, and the NSE Nifty slipped 1.45 points or 0.01 per cent to 11,220.95.

IndusInd Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 2 per cent, followed by ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI, PowerGrid, NTPC and HDFC Bank.

On the other hand, Sun Pharma, ONGC, M&M and HUL were among the gainers.

In the previous session, Sensex ended 8.41 points or 0.02 per cent lower at 37,973.22, while Nifty slipped 5.15 points or 0.05 per cent to 11,222.40.

Exchange data showed that foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 1,456.66 crore on a net basis on Tuesday.

According to traders, domestic equities opened on a choppy note following mixed cues from global markets after the first US presidential election debate failed to cheer investors.

US President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden sparred in their first of three debates, hoping to sway undecided voters planning to cast ballots by mail and in person in the final weeks leading up to the November 3 election.

Further, the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country too kept market participants on edge, traders said.

India's Covid-19 caseload has touched 62,25,763, while the death toll has risen to 97,497, government data showed.

Meanwhile, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul were trading with gains in mid-day deals, while Tokyo was in the red.

Stock exchanges on Wall Street ended on a negative note in the overnight session.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.06 per cent lower at USD 41.13 per barrel.