Markets end near day's low

Markets ended on a flat note today, following a volatile session of trade.

The Sensex opened strong this morning on the back of cues from global markets. With buying in specific sectors, the index surged 90 points to a high of 17,599. However, selling pressure in Infosys and Sterlite dragged the markets into the red in noon trades. The index thereafter turned volatile and slumped 127 points from the day's high towards the end of the day - touching a low of 17,426.

The Sensex finally ended at 17,461  - down 48 points.

The Nifty ended up 14 points at 5,237

Asian stocks rose ahead of US employment data, due later today. The Taiwan Weighted and Straits Times added 1% each to 7,330 and 2,844, respectively. However, the Hang Seng dropped 1% to 19,905.

All sectoral indices, barring bankex, dropped into red. BSE capital goods and metal indices dropped sharply in late trades. The indices slumped 0.5% each to 14,494 and 14,382, respectively.

Sterlite shed 2.3% at Rs 161. Mahindra & Mahindra dropped 2% to Rs 602.

BHEL slipped 1.6% to RS 2,390. Infosys remained soft through the day and finally ended down 1.3% at Rs 2,729.

Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Infrastructure and ACC dropped 1% each.

Meanwhile, Wipro jumped 3% to Rs 386. Other IT stock, TCS, gained 1.6% at Rs 743.

NTPC and Hindalco added 1% each to Rs 202 and Rs 144, respectively.

Among banking stocks, Federal Bank surged 4% to Rs 329. Punjab National Bank gained 2.5% at Rs 1,046. IDBI and Axis Bank were also in green.

BSE market breadth was neutral. Out of 3,001 stocks traded, 1,446 stocks advanced while 1,428 declined.

VALUE TOPPERS...

RNRL topped the value chart with a turnover of Rs 115 cr, followed by Tata Steel (Rs 111.35 cr), Jubilant Organosys (Rs 100.25 cr), HPCL (Rs 89.77 cr) and Reliance Power (Rs 91.96 cr).