Key Indian stock indices ended higher on Wednesday, December 26, after trading almost flat at the opening. Notably, the benchmarks drew support from gains in banking names, although investors generally remained on the sidelines after the Christmas holiday. However, the external backdrop was negative, with Asian stock indices retreating across the board amid concerns about the partial government shutdown stateside, while European markets are offline today. Recapping the benchmarks, the Nifty 50 advanced 0.62% to 10,729.85, and the BSE Sensex closed 0.51% higher at 35,649.94. By 10:45 GMT, the USD/INR currency pair eased 0.19% to 70.125, while EUR/INR traded down 0.11% to 79.8560. The 10-year Indian government bond yield narrowed to 7.265%. As noted above, banking stocks outperformed the broader market. In particular, HDFC Bank and Housing Development Finance added 2.0% and 1.6%, respectively. Meanwhile, regional heavyweight Reliance Industries picked up 0.8%. IT stocks were out of favor, with Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys shedding 1.5% and 0.8%, respectively. The daily chart shows that the BSE Sensex briefly touched the lower end of a rising wedge. Given where the Slow Stochastic Oscillator and the RSI are pointing, the benchmark will likely test the lower line of the current formation before long. $SENSEX, S&P BSE SENSEX INDEX / D