Sensex, Nifty End Modestly Lower As Tariff Anxiety Continues

(RTTNews) - Indian shares ended Wednesday's session lower after reports emerged that trade talks with the U.S. are in the final stage.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said New Delhi is prepared to reduce taxes for U.S. firms that could pave the way for a deal that could avert the 26-percent tariff rate he announced on April 2.

His comments followed media reports about negotiations hitting a stalemate over key agricultural demands.

According to local media reports, India has hardened its stance against granting duty concessions to American farm products, while seeking tariff cuts for its labor-intensive exports like textiles, engineering goods, leather and gems and jewelry.

The benchmark S&P/BSE Sensex fell 287.60 points, or 0.34 percent, to 83,409.69 as Trump hinted at higher tariffs on certain countries after the July 9 deadline.

The broader NSE Nifty index closed down 88.40 points, or 0.35 percent, at 25,453.40 while the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indexes ended down around 0.2 percent each.

The market breadth was weak on the BSE, with 2,198 shares declining while 1,815 shares advanced and 158 shares closed unchanged.

BEL, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, Larsen & Toubro and Bajaj FinServ fell 1-2 percent while Tata Steel rallied 3.7 percent after awarding a major contract to Systems Group for a GBP 1.25 billion upgrade of its Port Talbot plant.

Maruti Suzuki India, Trent, UltraTech Cement and Asian Paints climbed 1-2 percent. IndusInd Bank tumbled 2.4 percent after global brokerage Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to 'sell' and said the bank has become a "weak franchise".

Paras Defence and Space Technologies surged 4.3 percent on securing a contract worth Rs. 22 crores from French company Cerbair.

CLN Energy soared 5 percent on winning a tender worth Rs. 107.91 crores to supply lithium-ion batteries.

Gabriel India shares jumped more than 15 percent to extend gains from the previous session on restructuring news.