Sensex, Nifty turn red ahead of US Fed interest rate decision

Indian equity indices dipped in early trade on Wednesday, reflecting negative global market sentiments ahead of the result of the US Federal Reserve‘s policy meeting on interest rates.

In the initial trading, the Sensex fell 227.93 points to 59,491.81. The Nifty declined 55.05 points to 17,761.20.

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The largest laggards in the  Sensex group were IndusInd Bank, Infosys, HDFC, ICICI Bank, TCS, and Kotak Mahindra Bank. Nestle, Hindustan Unilever, Maruti, and Mahindra & Mahindra, on the other hand, benefited.

Delta Corps, Escorts, India Cements, PVR and RBL Bank have been placed under the F&O ban for September 21.

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Asian markets are trading mostly in the red with Nikkei 225 sinking 316.36 points or 1.14% to 27,372.06, Hang Seng dipping314.34 points or 1.67% to 18,467.08, Taiwan Weighted losing 86.35 points or 0.59% to 14,462.95, KOSPI dropped18.92 points or 0.80% to 2,348.93, Jakarta Composite sank 38.12 points or 0.53% to 7,158.83 and Shanghai Composite was down by 17.39 points or 0.56% to 3,105.02, while Straits Times was up by 0.47 points or 0.01% to 3,267.41.

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The US markets had ended in negative territory on Tuesday. The S&P 500 plunged 43.96 points, or 1.13%, to 3,855.93. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 313.45 points, or 1.01%, to 30,706.23. The Nasdaq composite dipped 109.97 points, or 0.95%, to 11,425.05. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies tumbled 25.34 points, or 1.40%, to 1,787.50.

“Markets are likely to trade in choppy waters intra-day, as traders look forward to the keenly awaited US Fed policy meeting outcome on interest rates,” said Prashanth Tapse – Research Analyst, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Limited.

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On Tuesday, the Sensex rose 578.51 points, or 0.98%, to 59,719.74. The Nifty gained 194 points, or 1.10%, to close at 17,816.25.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have bought shares worth a net Rs 1,196.19 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth a net Rs 131.94 crore on September 20, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

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Separately, Brent crude, the international oil standard, rose 0.22% to USD 90.82 per barrel. The rupee fell 8 paise to 79.82 against the dollar in early trade on Wednesday, as investors awaited the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement for more indications.