Indian shares ended lower on Thursday amid expectations that tensions between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan will not escalate further, while investors awaited a key economic data due later in the day. The United States, China and other world powers have urged restraint from the two nations as tensions escalate following tit-for-tat airstrikes in the wake of a suicide car bombing that killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Feb. 14.
The broader NSE index closed 0.13 percent lower at 10,792.50, while the benchmark BSE index was down 0.11 percent at 35,867.44. In February, the NSE index slipped 0.4 percent, while the BSE index finished over 1 percent lower. Blue-chip IT stocks were hammered, with Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, the top drag on the NSE index, closing 3.6 percent lower.
"Markets are discounting the situation on the border, as neither country seems to be in a position to escalate," said Sunil Sharma, chief investment officer, Sanctum Wealth Management. "Also, this (the conflict) has likely provided clarity on the election outcome, raising the odds of a victory for the incumbent regime, or at the very least, a stronger positioning heading into May elections."
Yet, there will be some volatility during the session due to the F&O expiry, Sharma added. "The upshot is that despite the escalation, the most likely outcome is that some compromise is found that allows both sides to back down," said Gareth Leather, Senior Asia Economist at Capital Economics, in a note.
Investors also awaited India's gross domestic product data due later in the day. Energy and financial stocks led the gains on the NSE index, with Reliance Industries Ltd rising up to 1.3 percent, and HDFC Bank Ltd adding as much as 0.7 percent. The NSE index is on track to end the month largely flat, while the BSE index is likely to finish 0.7 percent weaker.