Bears regain hold on bourses as markets snap 2-day winning run, Sensex falls 110 pts

Rupee declines 17 paise to close at fresh lifetime low of 77.61 against dollar

MUMBAI: Equity benchmarks surrendered early gains to close with modest losses on Wednesday, snapping their two-day winning streak as investors pared exposure to power, IT and bank stocks amid a mixed trend in global markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex soared in opening trade, before succumbing to bouts of volatility in the afternoon session. It finally settled 109.94 points or 0.20 per cent lower at 54,208.53.

On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty dipped 19 points or 0.12 per cent to finish at 16,240.30.

Powergrid was the biggest laggard in the Sensex pack, slumping 4.55 per cent, followed by Tech Mahindra,

SBI, L&T, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, NTPC and

Wipro.

In contrast, HUL, Ultratech Cement, Asian Paints, Sun Pharma, ITC and Axis Bank were among the gainers, advancing up to 2.02 per cent.

In the broader markets, the BSE midcap gauge dipped 0.13 per cent, while the smallcap index gained 0.33 per cent.

International oil benchmark Brent crude gained 1.13 per cent to $113.2 per barrel.

The rupee on Wednesday declined by 17 paise to close at its fresh lifetime low of 77.61 against the US dollar amid unabated foreign fund outflows and a stronger greenback in overseas markets.