Mumbai, Jul 8 (IANS): The Indian benchmark indices ended flat on Monday as the stock markets turned to a consolidation phase due to the absence of major triggers to support the current premium valuation in the near term, prompting investors to book some profits.

The Sensex closed at 79,960.38 points, or 36.2 points down while the Nifty closed at 24,320, just 3.3 points down.

Top Nifty gainers were ONGC, ITC, HDFC Life, HUL and Tata Consumer Products, while losers were Divis Labs, Titan Company, BPCL, and Shriram Finance.

The BSE midcap and smallcap indices ended marginally lower.

According to market watchers, the earnings season is around the corner, and the initial expectation is subdued. With stable input prices and ongoing price cuts, the period of margin expansion appears to be concluding, which is likely to affect earnings and valuations.

The rupee ended flat at 83.50 per dollar on Monday compared to Friday's close of 83.49.

According to Aditya Gaggar, Director of Progressive Shares, among the sectors, FMCG and energy were the top performers while PSU banks and metal were the major laggards.

"The Railway segment was the star performer of the day as almost all the counters surged over 5-6 per cent," he said.

According to analysts, as the market trades near all-time high levels, investors and traders can consider maintaining their positions with appropriate stop-loss orders.

"The Nifty remained range-bound during the day, as market participants appeared to be in no hurry to decide the market's direction. Support remains at 24,240, and a fall below this level might weaken the strength of the bulls," said Rupak De from LKP Securities.