Markets slip as selling in rate sensitives weigh on the index

Meanwhile, FMCG bucks trend; index up 0.6% as names like Hindustan Unilever and ITC gain

Benchmark indices slipped in the noon deals to trade near the day's low owing to weak Asian markets and selling in heavyweights like Infosys, ICICI Bank and ONGC. At 1300 hrs, the Sensex was down 118 points at 19,446 and the Nifty slipped 37 points at 5,877.

In the broader markets, the smallcap index slipped 1% and the midcap index gave off 0.7%, both underperforming the Sensex, which was down 0.6%.

In Asia, shares fell on investor concerns that the recent rally in global equities was running out of steam, while sterling remained vulnerable after weak UK data fed fears of a triple-dip recession.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.5%. South Korean shares bucked the regional downtrend, edging up 0.2%.

As the yen's weakness paused, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.5%, after snapping an 8-day winning streak which took the index up to a 4-1/2-year high on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley and HSBC each cut their India's economic growth forecasts for 2013/14 to 6.0% from 6.2% to reflect lower-than-expected growth in the October-December quarter.

Among the sectoral indices, FMCG index as the only one to remain in the green, up 0.6% as some buying was witnessed in frontline names like Hindustan Unilever and ITC.

The draggers in the early noon trades were Consumer Durables, Bankex, Auto and IT indices down 1% each.

Top loser among the Sensex stocks were Hindalco, ONGC, Jindal Steel, Gail India, ICICI Bank and Infosys down 2-3%.

All the major auto names were in the red. Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors, Hero MotoCorp and Mahindra & Mahindra slipped 0.6-1%.

Tata Motors was weighed down after its unit Jaguar Land Rover said retail vehicle sales grew by 3% to 26,855 vehicles in February, which were lower than expectations.

The gainers, meanwhile, were Sun Pharma, Sterlite, Wipro, Reliance Industries, Bharti Airtel and Coal India up 0.6-1%.

Among individual stocks, Power Grid Corporation was up 0.4% at Rs 110 as Goldman Sachs upgraded  the company to "buy" from "sell", citing inexpensive valuations.

A2Z Maintenance and Engineering Services tanked 13% to Rs 22.40, extending its 20% fall in past three trading sessions on BSE after the company said investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and his family sold more than one million shares of the company through open market transaction.