The Indian benchmark indices ended in the negative terrain, as investors were cautious over H1B visa issue and tariff discussions. In the same breath, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s commentary on high equity valuations weighed heavily on the market sentiment. Investors also booked profits, especially in the auto, FMCG and realty sectors, which rallied on the back of the GST reforms that came into effect on September 22.

The BSE Sensex closed today’s volatile session at 81,715.63, 386.47 points or 0.41% lower, while the NSE Nifty50 settled below 25,100, at 25,056.90, slipping by 0.45%.

On the Nifty50 index, only 16 stocks advanced, and 34 declined, while on the Sensex index, 9 stocks emerged as gainers, and 21 were losers.

Leading today’s rally were Power Grid (1.68%), Hindustan Unilever (1.36%) and NTPC (1.31%). Maruti Suzuki, which continued its rally for the second time, recorded a new 52-week high of ₹16,375 apiece in today’s trade.

On the other hand, Tata Motors was the top loser, sliding over by 2.6%, as its British subsidiary, Jaguar Land Rover extended its pause over production till October 1, after being disrupted by a cyberattack in September 1. Bharat Electronics and Jio Finance too followed, each declining by 2.16% and 2.02%.

In sector-wise trends, all indices ended on a negative note, except Nifty FMCG. Nifty Realty declined sharply by 2.55%, followed by Nifty Media and Nifty Private Bank, each slipping by around 0.85%. Nifty IT, which has been on a decline after the rise in prices of H1B visas, continued its downward trend in today’s session, as well, coming down by 0.74%. Nifty FMCG, though trading in the positive, rose marginally by 0.12%.

Broader markets too ended in the red, with Nifty Midcap 50 stumbling by over 1%, while the Nifty Smallcap 50 was down by 0.71%.

India VIX, the yardstick that measures market volatility bucked the trend, to cool of marginally by 0.47%.