Indian shares close flat as financials offset energy gains

BENGALURU: Indian shares ended little changed for a second straight session on Wednesday as investors refrained from making big bets due to concerns over high valuations following a recent rally.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index rose 0.01% to 15,576.20 at close, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex slipped 0.16% to 51,849.48.

Both the indexes gained more than 6% last month as a steady decline in daily COVID-19 cases lifted investor sentiment.

However, concerns remain as several economists have warned about the impact of the second coronavirus wave on economic growth in the current quarter.

Dragging the Nifty 50 on Wednesday, cigarettes-to-hotels conglomerate ITC Ltd fell 3% after it warned that pandemic-driven restrictions could cause supply chain disruptions in the near future.

Losses in heavyweight financial and information technology stocks also weighed on the indexes, with top private-sector lender HDFC Bank and software services firm Infosys Ltd falling 0.5% and 0.6%, respectively.

Countering those declines, conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd and Tata Steel Ltd gained 1.5% and 2.1%, respectively. Reliance shares have risen for six straight sessions.

Auto components maker Motherson Sumi Systems Ltd closed 13.4% higher after it reported an almost fourfold jump in March-quarter profit.

Globally, stock markets hovered near record highs as investors cheered evidence of a sustained rebound in global economies after strong factory data from the United States and Europe.