Negative global cues and heavy selling pressure in healthcare, oil and gas, and banking stocks led the Indian equity markets to close on flat-to-negative note on Wednesday.
Market observers said investors were cautious ahead of the outcome of the two-day US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meet, due later in the evening.
The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) inched down by 1.85 points or 0.02 per cent to close (provisionally) at 9,311.95 points.
The barometer 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE, which opened at 29,984.95 points, provisionally closed at 29,894.80 points (at 3.30 p.m.) — down 26.38 points or 0.09 per cent from its previous close at 29,921.18 points.
The Sensex touched a high of 30,020.59 points and a low of 29,846.57 points during the intra-day trade.
The BSE market breadth favoured a bearish mood — with 1,488 declines and 1,357 advances.
On Tuesday, the benchmark indices closed on a flat-to-positive note. The NSE Nifty inched up by 9.75 points or 0.10 per cent to close at 9,313.80 points, while the BSE Sensex closed at 29,921.18 points — up a tad 2.78 points or 0.01 per cent.