MARKETS: Sensex up 50 pts, broader indices dip; ITC, HDFC Bank top gainers

MARKETS: Sensex up 50 pts, broader indices dip; ITC, HDFC Bank top gainers

• By Staff Writer

MARKETS: Sensex up 50 pts, broader indices dip; ITC, HDFC Bank top gainers

National markets were volatile on Wednesday, tracking mixed cues from Asian peers, as investors weighed the impact of rising cases of Covid-19 in the country, and awaited the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy.

Among key headline indices, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 50,430 levels while the NSE's Nifty50 was quoting at 14,910 levels.

L&T, GAIL, Tech Mahindra, ITC, and M&M, all up between 1% and 2%, were the top performing stocks on the Nifty, while BPCL, Asian Paints, Hindalco, Axis Bank, and HDFC Life, down up to 2.6%, were the top laggards.

Independently, shares of SBI Cards slipped over 3% on the BSE after nearly 6 per cent equity changed hands on the stock. According to a Bloomberg report, US private equity fund CA Rover Holdings, an affiliate of Carlyle Asia Partners, was looking to sell stake in SBI Cards and Payment Services benefit $514 million or Rs 3,728 crore through a block deal.

BPCL, too, tanked 3% in early deals after the company announced second interim dividend worth Rs 5 per share, as against Street's expectation of Rs 40-50 per share.

In the broader markets, the S&P BSE MidCap index was 0.57% lower, while the S&P BSE SmallCap index was down 0.2 %.

Sectorally, all the Nifty indices were trading in the red, barring Nifty IT index.