Stock markets end with marginal gains in volatile trade

Market Performance - The benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended on a flat note after a three-day rally, with Sensex gaining 12.16 points (0.01%) to close at 84,478.67 and Nifty rising 3.35 points (0.01%) to finish at 25,879.15 [1][3][4] - During the trading session, Sensex reached a high of 84,919.43 and a low of 84,253.05 [3] Sector Performance - Among the gainers in the Sensex pack were Asian Paints, ICICI Bank, PowerGrid, Larsen & Toubro, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Maruti Suzuki India, Axis Bank, UltraTech Cement, and HCL Technologies [4] - Conversely, laggards included Tata Motors' commercial vehicles arm, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, Trent, Tata Consultancy Services, Hindustan Unilever, and Infosys [5] Investor Sentiment - Investor sentiment was positively influenced by the signing of a short-term funding bill by Trump to end the US government shutdown and expectations of tariff relief for India [6] - Record-low October inflation figures bolstered expectations for an interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), making rate-sensitive sectors like metals and realty attractive to investors [6] Foreign and Domestic Investment - Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers for the third consecutive day, offloading equities worth ₹1,750.03 crore [9] - In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) continued their buying spree, purchasing stocks worth ₹5,127.12 crore [10] Global Market Context - Asian markets showed positive performance, with indices such as Shanghai's SSE Composite, Hong Kong's Hang Seng, Japan's Nikkei 225, and South Korea's Kospi ending higher [8] - Brent crude oil prices declined by 0.29% to $62.53 per barrel [8]