Indian shares flat, metal stocks drag

People walk past the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai, India, November 4, 2020. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas

BENGALURU, June 20 (Reuters) – Indian shares were little changed on Monday, with gains in financials offset by losses in metals, while fears of a looming recession persisted among global investors.

The NSE Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) fell 0.09% to 15,280.5 as of 0355 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) was up 0.02% at 51,360.02.

Both indexes fell over 5% last week in their biggest weekly drop in two years.

Asian shares were unable to sustain a rare rally on Monday, as Wall Street futures shed early gains amid worries the U.S. Federal Reserve would this week underline its commitment to fighting inflation with whatever rate hikes were needed.

The Nifty metal index (.NIFTYMET) fell 2.7%, with Vedanta Ltd (VDAN.NS) shedding over 5%.

The miner invited expressions of interest for sale of its closed copper smelter in southern India.

Reporting by Tanvi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.