Sensex, Nifty trim gains to close almost flat in choppy trade sessions

Mumbai (PTI): Benchmark Sensex trimmed early gains to close marginally higher while Nifty settled flat in choppy trade on Tuesday as gains in auto shares were offset by selling pressure in banking and energy shares.

The 30-share BSE barometer closed marginally up by 37.08 points or 0.06% to 60,978.75 with 15 of its stocks ending in green and the rest in red. The index opened higher and gained over 300 points to a high of 61,266.06 in early trade.

The index, however, dropped over 400 points from the day’s high to touch a low of 60,849.12 due to selling in select counters. The broader NSE Nifty closed flat at 18,118.30 with 29 of its shares ending in red and 21 in green.

Among major gainers, Tata Motors rose the most by 3.26%.

Maruti rose by 3.23% after its posted a two-fold jump in net profit for the December quarter on robust sales. HCL Tech, HDFC twins, Asian Paints, IndusInd Bank, TCS and

` FALLS 28 PAISE TO 81.70 AGAINST US DOLLAR

Mumbai (PTI): The rupee fell 28 paise to close as 81.70 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday as unabated foreign fund outflow hit market sentiments. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened lower at 81.61 to a dollar against the previous close of 81.42. The local unit moved in a range of 81.43 to 81.76 during the day.

ITC were among the gainers. Axis Bank declined 2.43% a day after it reported financial results. L&T, Reliance Industries, SBI, Kotak Bank, Tata Steel, and Power Grid were major losers.