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Stock Market Today: Indian equity benchmarks opened lower on Thursday amid weak global cues and cautious investor sentiment.

The BSE Sensex slipped 189.74 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 84,369.91 at 9:16 am, compared with its previous close of 84,559.65. The index opened at 84,518.33.

The Nifty 50 declined 42.20 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 25,776.35, against its previous close of 25,818.55. The benchmark opened lower at 25,764.70.

Sun Pharma, TVS Motor, Mahindra and Mahindra, NTPC, Maruti Suzuki, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tata Steel and Bharat Electronics were among the top losers, falling up to 2 per cent. On the other hand, Infosys, HCLTech, Tech Mahindra, TCS, SBI and ITC were the top gainers in early trade.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Auto, Nifty Pharma and Nifty Realty indices were the top laggards, down up to 1 per cent. Meanwhile, Nifty IT gained 0.9 per cent, while the Nifty PSU Bank index rose 0.25 per cent.

In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 index slipped 0.10 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 index was down 0.2 per cent.

Globally, investors are awaiting the Bank of England interest rate decision, the European Central Bank policy outcome and key US data, including inflation and jobless claims. The Bank of Japan will also begin its two-day policy meeting, with markets expecting a rate hike to 0.75 per cent on Friday.

In institutional trade, foreign institutional investors net bought shares worth Rs 1,449.22 crore, while domestic institutional investors purchased shares worth Rs 587.16 crore on Wednesday, December 17.