Indian frontline equity indices closed in the red on Wednesday as they erased gains in the last hour with Reliance, and Nestle shares pulling them lower.

At closing, Sensex closed at 81,467, down 167 points, or 0.21 per cent, and Nifty closed at 24,981, down 31 points or 0.12 per cent.

The market sentiment was positive.

On the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), 2,706 shares closed in the green, 1,246 shares in the red, and 97 shares closed without any change.

At the day's end, the market cap of all companies listed on BSE was Rs 462 lakh crore, as against Rs 459 lakh crore on Tuesday.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said banks and NBFCs need to carefully assess their exposures in unsecured loan areas, both in terms of quality and size.

During his briefing on the decisions of the RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), he said: "Some NBFCs were not pursuing strong underwriting for high growth. Self-improvement by NBFCs is the desired option. These NBFCs are also being closely monitored by the RBI and we will not hesitate to take action, if necessary."

"Some NBFC companies, including MFIs (microfinance institutions) and housing finance companies, are trying to get higher returns on equity. However, this is not common across the sector. RBI is engaging with such companies."

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday said the real GDP for FY25 is estimated to be 7.2 per cent, which is in line with global projections amid strong fundamentals, rising consumption and robust investment sentiment in the country.

Das estimated real GDP for Q2 FY25 at 7 per cent, Q3 at 7.4 per cent and Q4 at 7.4 per cent. Real GDP growth of Q1 of next year has been estimated at 7.3 per cent.

Speaking on the third and last day of the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, Das said that the share of investment in the GDP has reached its highest level since 2012-13.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday said that retail inflation for the current fiscal (FY25) is projected at 4.5 per cent due to healthy monsoon and sound supply conditions.

Addressing the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting here, Das said that food inflation is likely to decrease later in the year, supported by a solid stock of essential commodities.

The RBI MPC projected Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation for FY25 at 4.5 per cent, with quarterly estimates of 4.1 per cent for Q2, 4.8 per cent for Q3, and 4.2 per cent for Q4.

"Food inflation could see some easing later in this fiscal on the back of strong kharif sowing, adequate buffers and good soil conditions," said Das, adding that this would help stabilise food prices and ease inflationary pressures in the economy.

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Wednesday decided to maintain the status quo on the repo rate at the current 6.5 per cent, while retaining India's real GDP growth forecast at 7.2 per cent for FY25.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said that inflation for the third quarter (Q3) this fiscal is set to moderately increase to 4.8 per cent, saying that moderation in inflation is likely to remain slow and uneven.

"The inflation horse has been brought to the stable within the tolerance band. We have to be careful about opening the gate," he said during the MPC briefing.

The central bank decided to hold rates steady despite the US Federal Reserve's recent rate cut of 50 basis points. The RBI has changed the stance to 'neutral' from "withdrawal of accommodation".

Indian equity indices were trading higher on Wednesday before the monetary policy decision announcement from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

At 9.48 a.m., Sensex was up 251 points or 0.31 per cent at 81,873 and Nifty was up 81 points or 0.34 per cent at 25,097.

The market trend remains positive. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 1,855 shares were in the green and 396 shares were in the red.

In the Sensex pack, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance, SBI, Wipro, Bharti Airtel, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank, TCS and Infosys were the top gainers. ITC, Nestle, Reliance, JSW Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, NTPC, HUL, L&T and ICICI Bank were the top losers.

After the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, the National Space Commission has cleared the fifth lunar mission -- the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission or Lupex.

The Lupex mission will explore the Moon for water and other resources. It is a collaborative effort between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The mission is also part of India’s larger lunar roadmap that envisages sending an astronaut to the Moon and bringing him or her safely back.

Importantly, the Lupex mission could reportedly live for up to 100 days on the lunar surface -- over five times the duration of Chandrayaan-3’s mission life.

Indian equity benchmark closed on a positive note, on the back of election results which supported PSU stocks and brought optimism in the market.

At closing, Sensex was up 584 points or 0.72 per cent at 81,634 and Nifty was at 25,013, up 217 points or 0.88 per cent.

The market trend was positive in the session. On BSE, 3,020 shares closed in the green, 924 shares in the red and 101 shares closed without any change.

Due to sharp gain, the market cap of all companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) increased by about Rs 7 lakh crore to Rs 459 lakh crore, which was earlier Rs 452 lakh crore.

The total gross enrollments under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) have crossed 7 crore, with an enrolment of over 56 lakh in the current fiscal (FY25) to date, according to the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) on Tuesday.

APY is a guaranteed pension scheme by the government and regulated by PFRDA.

“The scheme is in its 10th year of rollout, and has achieved a big milestone,” said the authority.

Focused on unorganised sector workers, the pension scheme provides a guaranteed minimum pension of Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 per month based on contributions. The APY ensures a dignified life in old age for unorganised workers, addressing their financial insecurities and garnering their support.

The Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cleared the initial public offering (IPO) of India's largest depository, the National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL).

The market watchdog issued an observation on Sept 30, for the company's public offering. In SEBI's parlance, obtaining the observation letter means its go-ahead to float the public issue.

The issue of the Mumbai-based securities depository will consist only of an offer for sale component.

According to a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filed by NSDL on July 7, 2023, the depository will sell up to 5.72 crore shares through the issue of equity shares with a face value of Rs 2.