Indices open flat; Nifty slips below 8,800-mark

The equity indices on Tuesday opened flat as global investors remained cautious ahead of US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan policy meet.

At 0919 hours the BSE Sensex was trading at 28,609.49, down 25 points, or 0.09%. The NSE Nifty was at 8798.75, down 9.65 points, or 0.11%.

On 30-share benchmark, among top gainers were Maruti Suzuki (0.63%), ONGC (0.43%), Asian Paint (0.43%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (0.42%) and Mahindra and Mahindra (0.38%). Among losers were Hero MotoCorp (-1.62%), Bajaj Auto (-0.86%), Infosys (-0.64%), Adani Ports (-0.54%) and HDFC (-0.41%).

The Indian rupee opened flat at 66.97 per dollar as against previous close at 66.96.

On the global front, Asian shares edged lower as investors nervously waited on the outcomes of the Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan policy meetings that begin later in the session. 

The consensus is that the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged at the end of its two-day meeting, with investors focusing on the statement as well as Chair Janet Yellen`s speech for clues on the timing of the central bank`s next interest rate increase, a Reuters report said.

Japan`s Nikkei stock index shed 0.5%, as trading resumed after a public holiday on Monday. Tokyo markets will be closed for another holiday on Thursday, with the highly-anticipated BOJ meeting sandwiched in between the market closures, the report added.