The Indian benchmark indices opened flat on Friday after the second consecutive rate cut by the US Fed, as selling was seen in auto, PSU bank, media, oil and gas sectors.

Sensex was trading at 79,522.39 after slipping 19.40 points or 0.02 per cent. At the same time, Nifty was trading at 24,179.85 after slipping 19.50 points or 0.08 per cent.

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The market trend remained negative. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 746 stocks were trading in green, while 1463 stocks were trading in red.

Nifty Bank was at 51,897.05 after slipping 19.45 points or 0.04 per cent. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading at 57,116.50 after gaining 7.35 points or 0.01 per cent. The Nifty Smallcap 100 index was trading at 18,749.75 after slipping 14.10 points or 0.08 per cent.

Tata Motors, Reliance, ICICI Bank, Asian Paints, Maruti and NTPC were the top losers in the Sensex pack. Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, HCL Tech, Titan and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the top gainers.

According to market experts, Nifty erased the gains from the previous session, closing near 24,200. Global markets showed mixed sentiment, with some moving higher after the Federal Reserve announced a rate cut.

However, persistent selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continues to weigh on the markets, they said.

In Asian markets, except Shanghai and Hong Kong, markets in Jakarta, Tokyo, Seoul and Bangkok are trading in the green. At the same time, US stock markets closed in the red on the previous trading day.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 4,888 crore on November 7, while domestic institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 1,786 crore on the same day.

Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research at Axis Securities said Nifty traced a bearish engulfing formation on Thursday, as it fell 1.2 per cent.

“Breadth was negatively skewed with nine stocks falling for every that rose. The price action over the last couple of weeks has clearly shown the significance of near-term technical resistance in the 24,541-24,560 area,” he mentioned.

Unless Nifty is able to climb past that hurdle with 23,800 holding on the downside, the churn in this broad range is expected to continue. Derivatives activity in Nifty options suggests the mood remains bearish for now, said Chinchalkar.