A benchmark index of Indian equities on Wednesday pared some of its intra-day losses to close just below the 20,000-mark.
The 30-share sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 20,039.43, closed at 19,946.53 points (provisional), down 55.02 points or 0.28 percent, compared to its previous close at 20,001.55 points.
At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the 50-share S&P CNX Nifty closed at 5,981.8 points, down 0.45 percent.
Broader markets indices also closed lower, with the BSE midcap ending trade 0.36 percent down and the BSE smallcap index 0.24 percent down.