Sensex down 8.29 points at 40,336.79, Nifty flat in pre-open

MUMBAI: Domestic stock market indices started Wednesday's session on a lower note tracking global peers.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was at 40,317 level. On NSE, the Nifty50 was testing 11,900-mark. 

The S&P BSE Sensex index rose as much as 113.59 points to touch 40,458.67 in the pre-opening session, before turning flat. 

Around 9:05 am, the Sensex was down 8.29 points - or 0.02 per cent - at 40,336.79 while the broader NSE Nifty benchmark was at 11,915.55, up 2.10 points from the previous close.

While Britannia shares jumped 5% post Q2 results and Coal India gained around 2% in the pre-open, HDFC, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma were the major losersd.

About 696 companies, including ABB, Bata, BHEL, IRCTC, and SpiceJet are slated to report their September quarter results today.

Asian stocks and Wall Street futures fell on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said a trade deal was “close” but gave no further details. Trump also rattled some investors by threatening China with even more tariffs if they do not sign a deal.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.2 per cent. Australian shares were down 0.17 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei slid 0.38 per cent.