Dec 17 Reuters Indian shares slipped on Tuesday, on acrosstheboard selling as investors braced for the Federal Reserve39;s monetary policy meeting for clues on its rate cut path next year.

The NSE Nifty 50 fell 1.35 to 24,336 points as of 330 p.m. IST, while the BSE Sensex declined 1.3 to 80,684.45.

All sectoral indexes apart from media fell. The more domesticallyfocussed smallcaps and midcaps declined 0.7 and 0.8, respectively.

The Indian rupee weakened to its lifetime low.

Two analysts said foreign investors likely sold stocks, after data showed India39;s trade deficit widened to a record level in November.

While a quarterpoint rate cut at the end of Fed39;s twoday meeting on Wednesday is widely expected and priced in, markets are bracing for the central bank to scale back its easing in 2025 in anticipation of higher inflation under the Donald Trump administration.

Indian market sentiment was bogged down by selling pressure as foreign investors waited for clues on further monetary policy easing by Fed on Wednesday, Sunny Agrawal, head of fundamental equity research at SBICaps Securities, said.

Financials, the heaviest sector on the Nifty 50, dropped 1.44, dragged by a 1.7 fall in HDFC Bank after the private lender received a regulatory warning alleging noncompliance with provisions for disclosures.

Reliance Industries  another Nifty heavyweight slipped 1.8, dragging the energy index 1.6 lower.

IT firms, which get a bulk of their revenue from the U.S., dropped…