Sensex Ends 95 Points Higher in See-saw Session, HDFC Twins Shine

US President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden clashed in a no-holds-barred debate filled with personal attacks and name-calling, hoping to sway undecided voters ahead of the November 3 election. “As expected, benchmark indices remained volatile throughout the day, fluctuating between losses and gains before finally ending the day flat. “Global cues were mostly negative, following caution over the outcome of US presidential elections and also because of rising virus cases around the world. Traders are advised caution as markets are expected to remain volatile,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. Sectorally, BSE consumer durables, FMCG, capital goods, industrials, healthcare, finance and IT indices rose as much as 1.72 per cent, while telecom, metal, oil and gas, energy and realty closed with losses. Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices ended marginally higher. The country’s current account surplus rose to USD 19.8 billion or 3.9 per cent of GDP in the June quarter as merchandise imports declined amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Reserve Bank said on Wednesday. In rest of Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Tokyo ended in the red, while Hong Kong and Seoul settled with gains. Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a negative note in early deals.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.23 per cent lower at USD 41.05 per barrel. In the forex market, the rupee settled 10 paise higher at 73.76 against the US dollar.