Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty closed lower on the Budget day on Thursday as investors resorted to profit-taking in capital goods, metal and realty shares amid no big announcements by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
After shedding early gains, the markets turned volatile during the presentation of the interim Budget, where in the capital expenditure outlay was marginally hiked but there were no major announcements.
The 30-share BSE Sensex settled lower by 106.81 points or 0.15 per cent at 71,645.30. During the day, it gyrated between a high of 72,151.02 and a low of 71,574.89.
The Nifty dipped 28.25 points or 0.13 per cent to 21,697.45. It oscillated between the day's high of 21,832.95 and a low of 21,658.75. Market sentiment was also dampened after the US Federal Reserve indicated it likely won't cut interest rates in March.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday hiked capital expenditure by 11 per cent for the next fiscal to sustain world-beating economic growth rate while trimming the deficit in a reform-oriented interim Budget that also gave relief to common man from disputed small tax demands of up to Rs 25,000.
Presenting a vote on account or an interim Budget for 2024-25, Sitharaman proposed no changes in income tax rates for individuals and corporates, as well as customs duty. In less than an hour-long budget speech, she presented the Modi government's achievements in the last 10 years that transformed India from being a 'fragile' economy to the world's fastest-growing major economy. -- PTI