Indian shares end flat

Indian shares closed largely flat on Monday as upbeat November services activity data helped reverse earlier losses in the final minutes of a volatile session.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed 0.05 per cent lower at 62,834.60. The NSE Nifty 50 index settled 0.03 per cent higher at 18,701.05, reports Reuters.

Both the indexes fell as much as 0.6 per cent earlier in the session.

“Positive services PMI data could have triggered the recovery from lower levels in intraday trade,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail) at Kotak Services.

India’s services activity grew at its quickest pace in three months in November on strong demand, lifting business confidence to its highest since January 2015, a business survey showed.

But the survey also showed elevated input prices forced firms to raise prices at the sharpest rate in about five-and-a-half years, which could further pressure overall inflation.

The reading comes as the Reserve Bank of India starts its three-day meeting, with the central bank widely expected to raise interest rates by a smaller 35-basis points, to 6.25 per cent, on Wednesday, which analysts say has been mostly priced into the market.

Adding to the pressure on the day was 1.75 per cent rise in oil prices, which adds to inflation worries as India is one of the largest importers of the commodity.