The markets ended Thursday's trading session on a weak note. The Nifty slipped below 5,200 levels to provisionally close at 5,192 down 47 points and the Sensex ended lower by 139 points to provisionally close at 17,162.
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(Updated at 1430 hours)
Markets continue to trade on a weak note. The Nifty has slipped below the crucial psychological level of 5,200, down 57 points at 5,182 and the Sensex is down 173 points at 17,128.
the Asian markets ended on a subdued note. The Hang Seng slipped 0.3% to close at 21,249, Shanghai ended flat at 2,440 levels and Taiwan closed at 7,659, down 17 points.
Meanwhile, the European markets have opened on a firm note and are trading higher. CAC, FTSE and DAX have advanced 0.5-1% each in the opening deals.
Back home, Hero MotoCorp continues to face the heat of selling pressure, the stocks has plunged 7.5% to Rs 2,078 after reporting lower than expected Q4FY12 results. Copal India, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki, DLF, Tata Power, State Bank of India, Bajaj Auto, Jindal Steel and NTPC are also among the laggards.
However, HUL, Wipro, BHEL, TCS, Infosys, HDFC Bank, Cipla, Sun Pharma and Sterlite Industries are among the notable gainers among the Sensex stocks.
Auto, metal and banking stocks are amongst the worst hit in trades so far. The BSE Auto index is the top sectoral loser, down 2.12% or 221 points at 10,241. Metal and Bankex indices have shed 1.5% each. PSU, realty, power, capital goods, oil & gas and FMCG stocks are also facing a mild selling pressure. On the other hand, IT, consumer durables, and healthcare stocks are witnessing some buying.
The broader markets are in line with the benchmark indices, the BSE mid-cap index has shed 66 points to 6,323 levels and the small-cap index is down 60 points at 6,717 levels.
The overall breadth is negative as 1,715 stocks are declining while 927 are advancing
