Markets continue to languish

Markets remained in red with the Sensex dropping 51 points to 18,160. Nifty was down 16 points at 5,442.
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(Updated at 1030 hrs)

Markets continued to trade on a flat note after a choppy session in opening trades. The Sensex was unchanged at 18,210.

The Nifty was flat at 5,454.

BSE capital goods index jumped 1% to 13,276. Consumer durables and FMCG indices were up around 1% each.

Meanwhile, the BSE auto index dropped 1.3% to 8,600, followed by realty and bankex. Auto shares dropped in morning trades on fears of hike in excise duty.

Wipro jumped nearly 3% to Rs 444. Some of the metal stocks were in green. Sterlite and Jindal Steel added 2% each to Rs 164 and Rs 690, respectively.

BHEL, Larsen & Toubro and Reliance were up 1% each.

Reliance Infra, ONGC andJaiprakash Associates were also in green.

Meanwhile, Tata Motors remained weak and was down 2.5%, followed by DLF, Hero Honda, Tata Power and Mahindra & Mahindra.

NTPC, HDFC Bank, TCS and Hindalco were down over 1% each in trades. Other losers were Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, SBI and Infosys.