Markets continued to move sideways in late-morning deals. The Sensex is now up 17 points at 19,343. Nifty is flat at 5,854.
Broader markets were marginally up as well. BSE mid and small-cap indices were up 0.2% each at 6,620 and 6,567, respectively.
Elsewhere in Asia, markets moved off their early lows to trade mostly higher Friday, as investors dipped a toe back into battered markets, although Chinese shares remained weak. Nikkei has added 37 points to 11,346. Shanghai Composite was trading unchanged at 2,328.
BSE realty index was up 1.5% at 2116. Oil & gas sector advanced 1% on teh back of gains in Reliance. IT, bankex and healthcare indices also advanced in trades.
However, BSE FMCG index slipped 1% at 5,702. Auto and consumer durables indices were down around 0.7% each.
HDFC was down 2.4% at Rs 796 after global brokerage firm Goldman Sachs cut its rating to 'sell' from 'neutral' citing concerns India's economy would recover at a "modest" pace and the prospect of rising competition.
Tata Motors slipped 2%, followed by HUL, NTPC and Maruti Suzuki. On the other hand, Bharti Airtel added 2.6% at Rs 304. Wipro, Sun Pharma and Jindal Steel are up 1-2% each. Market heavyweight - Reliance is up 1.5% at Rs 869. RIL, ONGC and Infosys together has contributed around 60 points to the Sensex.
Among individual stocks, Jet Airways, country's biggest aviation firm, dropped over 4% in early trades this Friday after the Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways put a host of new conditions including an option to buy up to 49 per cent stake in the firm.
ABB fell 1.24% to Rs 576, extending Thursday's 4.50% fall triggered by the company's weak Q4 December 2012 results. Havells India rose 1% to Rs 664 on BSE after the company's board approved increasing the shareholding limit of foreign institutional investors in the company to 40% from 24%.
