Broader markets outperformed the headline peers as BSE smallcap and midcap indices settled in green, after hitting fresh 52-week highs. Domestic equity markets snapped the three-day winning streak and settled lower on Thursday. The weak global cues weighed on the market sentiments. The hawkish tone of the US Federal Reserve, despite the rate hike pause, indicating the possibility of two more rate hikes fueled pessimism in the markets. For the day, BSE Sensex dropped 310.88 points, or 0.49 per cent, to settle at 62,917.63, while NSE's Nifty50 fell 67.80 points, or 0.36 per cent, to end the day at 18,688.10. Broader markets outperformed the headline peers as BSE smallcap and midcap indices settled in green, after hitting fresh 52-week highs. Fear gauge India VIX eased about a per cent to 11.08-level. "Markets traded volatile on the weekly expiry day and shed nearly half a percent. After the flat start, Nifty tried to inch higher but pressure in banking and IT heavyweights pushed the index lower as the day progressed. Consequently, Nifty settled closer to the day’s low," said Ajit Mishra, SVP - Technical Research, Religare Broking. "The banking index has finally breached the first line of defense that 20 EMA and that indicates further profit taking ahead. However, resilience in other sectors like auto, FMCG, realty and energy may cap the damage. Besides, the performance of the global indices, especially the US markets, will also be in focus for cues. Amid all, we suggest keeping a check on positions amid mixed signals and waiting for clarity," he further said. On a sectoral front, Nifty PSU bank index dropped 2 per cent, while the Nifty private bank and the Nifty media index dropped a per cent, each. Nifty financial services and realty indices were the other key losers. Among the gainers, Nifty pharma and healthcare indices gained over a per cent, each, while Nifty FMCG index rose over a per cent, each. In the Nifty50 pack, Hero Motocorp topped among the losers and dropped more than 4 per cent. Wipro, IndusInd Bank, State Bank of India and Kotak Mahindra Bank dropped 2 per cent, each. HDFC Life Insurance, ICICI Bank, HDFC bank and Eicher Motors were the other key laggards. Among the gainers, Apollo Hospital Enterprises surged 4 per cent, while Divis Labs ended 3 per cent up. Dr Reddy's Labs rose over 2 per cent, while Cipla also posted similar gains. Bharat Petroleum, Adani Entertainment and Mahindra & Mahindra gained over a per cent, each. The domestic indices rebounded after an initial phase of profit booking, driven by encouraging WPI inflation data and positive global cues, while selling in IT and banking stocks kept a check on gains, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. "The favourable decline in US inflation, driven by lower energy prices, and speculation about a potential pause in the Fed rate hike campaign, brought comfort to global equities. However, the persistence of higher core inflation levels may compel the Fed to maintain its hawkish tone during today’s policy announcement with an indication of a prolonged pause," he said. A total of 3,664 shares were traded on BSE on Wednesday, of which 1,784 settled with cuts. 1,740 stocks ended the session higher while 140 shares remained unchanged. A total of 14 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 4 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day. In the broader markets, Jubilant Industries hit an upper circuit of 20 per cent, while HEG surged more than 15 per cent. Poly Medicure gained about 13 per cent. Shaily Engineering and Morepen Laboratories gained more than 9 per cent each for the day. Among the losers, Sintex Plastics hit a lower circuit of 5 per cent, while Spandana Sphoorty Financial dropped about 5 per cent. CarTrade Tech, Zee Entertainment, Prestige Estate Projects, VA Tech Wabag and Sanghi Industries declined more than 4 per cent, each.