The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 40.28 points or 0.05% to 84,233.64. The Nifty 50 index rose 18.70 points or 0.07% to 25,953.85.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index shed 0.02% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.13%. The market breadth was negative.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 1% to 11.56.

Among the sectoral indices, the Nifty Auto index (up 1.03%), the Nifty PSU bank index (up 1.03%) and the Nifty Pharma index (up 1.01%) outperformed the Nifty 50 index.

Meanwhile, the Nifty IT index (down 1.76%), the Nifty Private Bank index (down 0.16%) and the Nifty FMCG index (up 0.04%) underperformed the Nifty 50 index.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.25% to 6.710 compared with previous session close of 6.727.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.6800 compared with its close of 90.5600 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement rose 1.71% to Rs 159,485.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.34% to 96.53.

The United States 10-year bond yield fell 0.39% to 4.129.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2026 settlement rose 93 cents or 1.35% to $69.73 a barrel.

Global Markets:

European markets traded mixed as global investors awaited the US nonfarm payroll data. Asia market ended higher even as China's consumer price index rose 0.2% in January from a year earlier, China’s National Bureau of Statistics data showed Wednesday. That’s below the widely reported forecast of 0.4% increase, a sign of continued deflationary pressure in the absence of stronger stimulus.

Japan’s markets were closed for a public holiday.

In U.S, December retail sales report showed that consumer spending was flat following a 0.6% increase in November, missing the 0.4% monthly gain that was widely expected.

Overnight, the S&P 500 slipped on Tuesday as investors reacted to weaker-than-expected retail sales data and grew concerned about the threat artificial intelligence poses to the financial sector.

The broad-based index lost 0.33% and ended at 6,941.81, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.59% and closed at 23,102.47. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 52.27 points, or 0.10%, posting a closing record of 50,188.14.

Financial stocks also took a hit Tuesday after tech platform Altruist launched a new AI-powered tax planning tool. Shares of LPL Financial declined 8.3%, while shares of Charles Schwab dropped 7.4% and Morgan Stanley dipped more than 2%.

Investors await the consumer price index data on Friday.