Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 23 (ANI): The Indian stock market failed to build on the opening gains, ending flat on Tuesday amid profit booking at higher levels.

Sensex ended down 42.64 points or 0.05% at 85,524.84, while the Nifty was up 4.75 points or 0.02% at 26,177.15.

IT index ended as the top loser witnessing a fall of 0.80% while Nifty Media, and Metal clocked healthy gains at 0.80% and 0.54% respectively. Nifty Bank also slipped 0.01%.

Market activity remained cautious ahead of the weekly derivatives expiry, keeping volatility elevated through the session.

Siddhartha Khemka - Head of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd said, 'Broader markets were relatively resilient with the Nifty Midcap 100 ending flat, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 advanced 0.4 percent, reflecting selective buying interest. Sectoral performance was also mixed.'.

'On the policy front, sentiment was supported by India announcing the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement with New Zealand, which allows duty-free entry of Indian goods into New Zealand and includes a planned investment inflow of $20 billion over the next 15 years,' he said.

'Looking ahead, markets will track key global economic data, including US durable goods orders and gross domestic product figures later today, followed by initial jobless claims tomorrow. Overall, we expect trading volumes to remain subdued during the holiday-shortened week, with markets likely to consolidate at higher levels and remain steady, supported by favourable global cues, he added.

Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities said that after showing sharp upmove in the last couple of sessions, Nifty cooled off its trend on Tuesday and closed the day on a consolidation mode. After opening on a positive note, the market shifted into a narrow range movement for better part of the session. Minor softness was seen towards the end and Nifty eventually closed on a flat to positive note.'

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited said the domestic market traded in a narrow range and ended flat amid mixed global cues. 'Selling pressure persisted across most sectors, though financials and FMCG offered marginal support. Going forward, investors are positioning for the next earnings season and monitoring evolving Fed policy expectations, as rate-cut probabilities are slowly inching up for the January meeting.'

'While an improving domestic demand outlook provides underlying support, uncertainty around global trade negotiations and the trajectory of the rupee will continue to influence sentiment,' Nair added.

The rupee traded flat near 89.65, moving in a tight 89.45-89.65 range as a softer dollar index around 98.45 and improved domestic risk sentiment provided support.

Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities said, 'A clear reversal has emerged after recent intervention-led buying from last week's lows near 91, stabilising the currency for now. Attention is on key US data including the PCE price index, new home sales, and weekly jobless claims, which could reintroduce volatility. Technically, support lies near 90.00 while resistance is seen around 89.25.' (ANI)