Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 27 (ANI): Indian benchmark equity indices ended lower on Thursday, with the Sensex falling 539 points and Nifty declining 0.48 per cent, as expiry-led volatility and continued uncertainty over a diplomatic breakthrough in the Middle East weighed on market sentiment.

The BSE Sensex closed at 76,933.59, down 539.35 points or 0.70 per cent, while the NSE Nifty 50 settled at 24,090.85, declining 116.90 points or 0.48 per cent.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said markets are likely to remain range-bound in the near term amid expiry-related volatility and geopolitical uncertainty.

'Expiry-led volatility and the lack of a diplomatic breakthrough in the Middle East continue to keep markets range-bound in the near term. While a degree of higher energy prices is largely factored into earnings expectations, the recent moderation in crude oil prices and long-term bond yields is supporting the inflation outlook,' Nair said.

He added that foreign institutional investor inflows and resilient earnings momentum remained supportive for Indian equities, particularly mid-cap stocks, where several segments are relatively insulated from global uncertainties and continue to benefit from strong domestic demand.

'Investors will also closely watch the Fed chair's upcoming Jackson Hole address for signals on inflation, interest rates, and the policy outlook, which could influence global risk sentiment and capital flows into emerging markets,' Nair said.

Among the sectoral indices on the NSE, Nifty Pharma was the only major sectoral gainer, rising 0.84 per cent, while Nifty Private Bank advanced 0.09 per cent. On the losing side, Nifty Metal declined 0.86 per cent, Nifty PSU Bank slipped 0.94 per cent, Nifty FMCG declined 0.47 per cent, Nifty Auto fell 0.40 per cent, and Nifty IT declined 0.32 per cent.

Among the Nifty stocks, Adani Enterprises emerged as the top gainer, rising 1.83 per cent, followed by Kotak Mahindra Bank at 1.80 per cent, Adani Ports at 1.33 per cent, Cipla at 1.23 per cent and Bharat Electronics Limited at 1.01 per cent.

Among the laggards, Hindalco Industries declined 2.75 per cent, followed by HDFC Bank at 2.23 per cent, Mahindra & Mahindra at 2.01 per cent, Shriram Finance at 1.48 per cent and Grasim Industries at 1.27 per cent.

Riyank Arora, Associate Vice President - HNI & Derivatives, Hedged.in, said the market's broader structure remained intact despite Thursday's decline, with the session reflecting profit booking after recent gains. 'As long as key support levels remain intact, the overall trend continues to favour the bulls,' Arora said, adding that traders and investors may continue to adopt a buy-on-dips approach in fundamentally strong stocks while maintaining disciplined risk management.

At the time of reporting, Brent crude was trading at USD 88.36 per barrel, up 0.60 per cent.

Among other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.20 per cent to 66,130, while Singapore's Straits Times declined 0.66 per cent to 5,684.12. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slipped 0.41 per cent to 25,549.

On the other hand, Taiwan Weighted Index gained 0.31 per cent to 45,975.22, South Korea's KOSPI rose 1.51 per cent to 6,912.37 and Shanghai Composite gained 1.11 per cent to 3,956.57. (ANI)