On Wednesday, the equity benchmark BSE Sensex lost early gains as investors booked profits amid concerns about inflation and
supply constraints.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 304.48 points or 0.53% to
close at 57,684.82. During the session, it declined 420.71 points or 0.72% to
57,568.59. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty fell 69.85 points or 0.4% to finish
at 17,245.65.

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Among sectoral indices, metal, oil & gas, power and
healthcare ended with gains, while selling was seen in the FMCG, auto, bank and
capital goods. The BSE midcap and smallcap ended flat for the second straight
day.

From the Sensex pack the major laggards were HDFC down by
2.36%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.25%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.97%, Sun
Pharma down by 1.65%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.54%, Mahindra & Mahindra down
by 1.33% and Asian Paints down by 1.16%.

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In contrast, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories up by 2.31%, Tata
Steel up by 2.15%, ITC up by 0.86% and Power Grid Corp up by 0.65% were the
prominent gainers.

The rupee lost initial gains to close 14 paise lower at
76.32 against the US dollar on Wednesday owing to month-end dollar demand from
importers and hiking crude prices amid geopolitical tensions.

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In the previous trading session, the BSE Sensex closed
696.81 points or 1.22% higher at 57,989.30. The Nifty jumped 197.90 points or
1.16% to close at 17,315.50.

Asian market bourses in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul and
Shanghai settled with gains after the US stocks closed significantly higher in
the overnight session. European stocks were also trading in green.

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Meanwhile, Brent crude, the international crude oil
benchmark climbed 2.12% to USD 117.8 per barrel.

According to stock exchange data, foreign institutional
investors (FIIs) were net buyers as they bought shares worth Rs 384.48 crore on
Tuesday.