FX.co ★ Sensex Finishes Slightly Higher

India’s BSE Sensex gave up most of its early gains to finish about 0.2% higher at 77,185 on Wednesday, recovering a portion of the previous session’s losses. The market remained under pressure from profit-taking, ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, and elevated crude oil prices. Early strength was driven primarily by banking and financial stocks ahead of key corporate earnings, while softer-than-expected US inflation data improved sentiment by tempering fears of a more aggressive Federal Reserve tightening path. Among major financials, SBI, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank advanced between 0.6% and 1.5%. On the broader index, Eternal (up 3.1%) and UltraTech Cement (up 2.8%) were among the top gainers.