The equity benchmarks settled marginally higher on Thursday after a volatile session, with investors turning cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) outcome on Friday.

After a flat opening, the Nifty inched up in early trade but later pared most of its gains as profit-booking in heavyweight stocks led to sharp intraday swings. The index finally settled at 26,033.75, up 47.75 points or 0.18 percent. The Sensex closed at 85,265.32, higher by 158.51 points or 0.19 percent.

Weakness in the rupee also weighed on overall sentiment.

Analysts said the Nifty could slip to 25,750 if it falls below 25,900.

Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research, Religare Broking, said the index is still holding above its initial support near the 20-day exponential moving average (20-DEMA) around

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