Despite the Sensex and Nifty regaining some ground amid volatility, Indian markets logged their fourth straight day of slump at Thursday's close.
The 30-pack Sensex shed at least 321 points shortly after Thursday's opening bell to hit a morning low of 84,238.43, before swiftly turning around. By 11 am, the benchmark BSE index was up by at least 75 points versus Wednesday's close of 84,559.65.
Before lunch Infosys, Axis Bank, TCS, Bajaj Finserv, and ICICI Bank led the recovery drive in the Sensex against laggards such as Sun Pharma, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Powergrid.
The US markets had closed lower on Wednesday and foreign inflows had helped Indian stocks recover some ground. But it did not last long.
Fresh foreign fund inflows did not sustain their support to the rupee, and the Indian currency traded in a narrow range. By closing bell, Sensex dropped by 77.84 points to settle at 84,481.81 while the Nifty ended almost flat, inching down 3 points to a 25,815.55 close.
Sun Pharma was the biggest index loser. Through the day, other laggards were Tata Steel, Power Grid, Asian Paints, and NTPC.
Much like the morning, IT stocks led by TCS, Tech Mahindra, and Infosys gained.
"After three consecutive declines, early gains were supported by value buying and a rupee recovery aided by central bank intervention. However, lingering uncertainty over a potential US-India trade deal dampened sentiment, prompting profit-booking later in the day," Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments told agencies.