Indian shares snapped five-day gaining streak to end lower on Thursday after a volatile session dragged by auto and IT sectors. Losses in index heavyweights like Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), ITC, Axis Bank and Maruti pushed the indices lower.

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The Sensex ended 166 points lower at 37,104, while the broader Nifty50 index lost 55 points to end the day at 10,981. In broader markets, the Nifty Midcap fell 0.4 percent, while the Nifty Smallcap index added 0.3 percent.

Investors also remained cautious ahead of the August retail inflation data, due later today. Indian retail inflation likely rose to a 10-month high in August primarily driven by higher food prices, while staying below the Reserve Bank of India's medium-term target of 4 percent, a Reuters poll of economists showed.

Meanwhile, Asia shares were buoyed by signs of de-escalation in the Sino-U.S. trade war and as investors hoped that the European Central Bank will deliver stimulus to arrest a slowing global economy. US President Donald Trump on Wednesday delayed an additional increase in tariffs on Chinese goods by two weeks, pushing MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan 0.4 percent higher.

Indiabulls Housing, Ultratech Cement, ICICI Bank, Hindalco and Sun Pharma were the top gainers on the Nifty50, while Yes Bank, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Axis Bank and JSW Steel led the losses.

Sectoral indices were mixed for the day. The Nifty Auto fell the most, down 1.8 percent followed by the Nifty Realty, down 0.8 percent. The Nifty IT and the Nifty FMCG also lost over 0.7 percent each. Meanwhile, the Nifty PSU Bank, the Nifty Pharma and the Nifty Fin Services ended the day in the green.

Auto stocks were under pressure as investors awaited a response from the Modi government to help them curb the ongoing slowdown. Tata Motors, TVS Motor Company, Maruti Suzuki and Ashok Leyland fell between 2-5 percent.

The Nifty IT also declined 0.8 percent on strong rupee dragged by Wipro, MindTree and TCS, down over 1 percent each.