A morning walk down Dalal Street | Expect rangebound trade to continue; above 11,556 Nifty may go beyond 11,600

A day of consolidation for Indian markets as traders preferred to remain on the sidelines ahead of the public holiday. The S&P BSE Sensex closed with positive bias while Nifty50 managed to hold on to 11500, but snapped its 7-days winning streak.

But, can we say that the momentum is fizzling out? To a certain extent yes, but a close above 11,556-11,600 would negate that theory, and investors will be better off staying with financials.

The final tally --- the S&P BSE Sensex rose 23 points to close at 38,386 while the Nifty50 closed 11 points lower at 11,521 on Wednesday.

In terms of sectors, capital goods, IT, and realty stocks led the rally while some profit taking was seen in oil & gas, power, and auto index.

The S&P BSE Mid-cap index closed 0.36 percent lower while the S&P BSE Small-cap index closed 0.33 percent lower.

On the global front, the US Federal Reserve indicated that it sees no further rate hikes this year, and released details of a plan to end the monthly reduction of its balance sheet, said a report. But, concerns over U.S.-China trade talks and slowing global growth capped broad gains.

The rupee on Wednesday recovered by 13 paise to close at 68.83 against the US dollar amid sustained buying by foreign investors in domestic equity markets and lower crude prices.

On the institutional front, FPIs were net buyers in Indian markets for Rs 1771 crore while DIIs were net sellers to the tune of Rs 1323 crore, provisional data showed.