Nifty, Sensex Close Higher Ahead Of TCS Q2 Results, US CPI Data: Market Wrap

Benchmark equity indices of India closed with little gains on Thursday as the markets look forward to the earnings of the country's largest IT services firm, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., to be released later in the day. Inflation data from the US after market hours will also be a key monitorable.

Intraday, the NSE Nifty 50 and S&P BSE Sensex rose around 0.6%. The Nifty ended 0.07%, or 16.50 points up at 24,998.45 and Sensex advanced 0.18%, or 144.3 points to close at 81,611.4.

Ahead of its September quarter results, TCS shares closed 0.6% lower at Rs 4,227.40 per share.

"Indian equities commenced the weekly expiry day on a firm note and compounded the morning gains, but once again failed to hold on and remained rangebound for the rest of the session," said Aditya Gaggar director of Progressive Share Brokers Pvt. "Nothing has changed, that is, support and resistance are very well-placed, that is, 24,900 and 25,200, and breakout on either sides will provide a clear picture."

Shares of HDFC Bank Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., Axis Bank Ltd., Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. contributed the most to gains in the Nifty.

While those of Infosys Ltd., Trent Ltd., Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Cipla Ltd., and Tech Mahindra Ltd. capped the upside.

On NSE, most sectoral indices were lower at close. Nifty Pharma fell the most and Nifty Bank was top gainer.

Broader markets ended on a mixed note. The BSE Midcap ended 0.36% down, while the BSE Smallcap ended 0.43% higher.

On BSE, 12 out of 20 sectors ended higher, while eight declined. The BSE Bankex rose the most, while the BSE Healthcare declined the most.

Market breadth was skewed in the favour of buyers. Around 2,266 stocks rose, 1,649 stocks declined, and 131 stocks remained unchanged on BSE.