Markets subdued

The markets are trading in a subdued manner this morning. The Sensex is quoting at 17411, lower by 39 points and the Nifty is at 5212, down 12 points. The mid-cap and small-cap indices are trading flat at 6719 and 8467 respectively.

HDFC has extended its losses and is now trading at Rs 2573, down 1.8%. Tata Motors has shed 1.7% at Rs 726 and ICICI Bank has lost 0.9% at Rs 917. SBI, Tata Power and NTPC are the other notable losers.

And index heavyweight Reliance Industries is trading flat, with a negative bias, at Rs 1086.

On the other hand, Hindustan Unilever has continued its good recent showing to emerge as the leading gainer on the BSE. The FMCG bellweather has added 1.9% at Rs 232. Telecom major Bharti Airtel has strengthened by 1.6% at Rs 311 on the back of the Zain deal and Sun Pharma has appreciated by 1% at Rs 1710.

The market breadth is positive. Out of 2311 stocks traded on the BSE, there are 1229 advancing stocks as against 993 declines.