Domestic equity benchmarks opened on a tepid note on Thursday as fresh concerns over the U.S.-China trade deal kept global investors on edge.
After opening slightly higher, the 30-share index turned negative to trade 41.31 points, or 0.10%, lower at 40,610.33. Similarly, the broader Nifty slipped 17.75 points, or 0.15%, to 11,981.35.
Top losers in the Sensex pack included Bharti Airtel which fell up to 1.51%, Axis Bank 1.12%, Yes Bank 0.68%, RIL 0.56% and M&M 0.43%.
On the other hand, L&T rose up to 2.21%, IndusInd Bank 1.54%, HCL Tech 1.22% and SBI 1.20%.
On Wednesday, the Sensex ended 181.94 points, or 0.45%, higher at 40,651.64, while the Nifty closed a tad below the crucial 12,000-mark, advancing 59 points, or 0.49%, to end at 11,999.10.
Foreign institutional investors bought shares worth ₹566.52 crore in the capital market in the previous session, while domestic institutional investors purchased equities worth ₹183.41 crore, data available with stock exchange showed.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo were trading in the red as reports of a delay in the U.S.-China trade deal dampened global investor sentiment.
Stocks on Wall Street ended on a negative note on Wednesday.
On the currency front, the rupee depreciated 2 paise (intra-day) against the U.S. dollar to trade at 71.83 in early session.
Brent futures, the global oil benchmark, slipped 0.29% to USD 62.22 per barrel.
