Sensex ends flat on high stock-specific volatility

Key equity indices closed on a flat note on Wednesday owing to high stock-specific volatility, ater having surged for the last seven consecutive days.

Th eb se sen sex closed on wednesday at 38,386.75, gaining only 23.28 points, or 0.06 per cent, while the Nity declined by 11.35 points, or 0.10 per cent.

On stock specific movements, Deepak Jasani of HDFC Securities said that airline stocks like Indigo and Spicejet rose due to expectations of beter times for them on account of a supply crunch in the industry caused by Jet Airways grounding many aircrat following financial troubles.

Media stocks witnessed heavy selling with the Nity media index falling over 3 per cent.

Real estate stocks jumped over 2 per cent on the BSE.

“Market lacked any clear direction, and with high volatility, it setled with mixed bias. Factoring tomorrow’s trading holiday it was waiting for the global cues post the (US) Fed policy today,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

“Consensus is showing a status quo in the (Fed) policy while the expectation has reduced from three hikes to one in 2019. Sustained inflow from overseas funds and strength in rupee is likely to support the market in the future.” The top gainers on Sensex were Infosys, HDFC Bank, Yes Bank, Larsen and Toubro and Sun Pharma, while the laggards were NTPC, ONGC, Coal India and Tata Steel.