Sensex, Nifty open flat; BEL, Hindalco, ONGC shares lead

Indian benchmark indices open flat in today's session, as global headwinds and profit booking weighed on investor sentiment. Wall Street ended in the red, after rallying to record highs leading to profit booking, while Asian markets too saw a mixed performance. The uncertainty in global markets comes in after U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell noted that “equity prices are fairly highly valued”.

Sensex declined by 16 points or 0.02%, at 81,699.47, while Nifty50 was flat, changing by 2 points from the previous closing, at 25,059.35.

On the Nifty50 index, 23 stocks gained, 26 declined and 1 remained unchanged. On the Sensex index, 14 stocks advanced, and 16 declined.

Leading today's trade was Bharat Electronics , advancing by 1.86%. Hindalco and ONGC followed, rising by 1.34% and 1.18% respectively.

Energy stocks will be in focus after US Energy Secretary Chris Wright commented that the US wants to expand energy cooperation with its "awesome ally" India, including in natural gas and coal, nuclear, and clean cooking fuels.

On the other hand, Tata Motors continues its losing streak for the third session as its British primum subsidiary, Jaguar Land Rover extended its pause on production till October 1, after facing disruptions from a cyber-attack that happened earlier this month. The shares of the automaker were down by 2.27%.

Asian Paints and Titan too were top laggards in the early hours of trade, each declining by 1.19% and 1.11% respectively.

Sector-wise, Nifty Metal outshone, rising by 0.74%, followed by Nifty Energy, which rose by 0.46%. Nifty FMCG also made a comeback, up by 0.26%, after it fell due to profit booking. On the other hand, Nifty Auto extended its decline by 0.75%.

Broader markets rebounded and outperformed benchmark indices, with Nifty Midcap50 rising by 0.15% and Nifty Smallcap50 by 0.22%.

India VIX, or the gauge for volatility too rose by 0.42%, at 10.57, reflecting investor caution.