Markets trading weak, Sensex down 135pts

The markets continued to trade under pressure, with the Sensex at 17,877 off 135 points, and the Nifty at 5,351 down 44 points.

The Consumer Durables index continued to trade strong up 1% at 6,396. On the other hand, the Capital Goods counter, which traded robustly yesterday, lost momentum today, and was the sectoral laggard at 12,715 off nearly 2%. The IT index dropped 2% to 5,903 as did the Realty index, which was quoting at 1,983.

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(Updated at 1140 hrs)

Weakness persisted in the markets, after a negative opening this morning. Although rangebound, the bourses were trading near fresh lows, with the Sensex at 17,886 off 126 points, and the Nifty at 5,360 off 35 points.

DLF was the top loser on the Sensex down 4% at Rs 210, while Tata Power at Rs 1,188 and Reliance Communications at Rs 81 shed 2% each. TCS and Bajaj Auto declined 2% each, while Infosys, L&T and Bharti Airtel let-off 1% each.

Only eight of the Sensex components were trading in th green, with Jindal Steel leading the gains at Rs 634 up 1%, followed by Tata Motors at Rs 1,130 and HDFC at Rs 653, both up 1%.

The broader markets were flat, with the Mid-cap index at 6,636 and the Small-cap at 8,043.

Amongst the sectoral indices, the Consumer Durables index added 1% at 6,404, followed by the Healthcare counter at 6,061 up 0.3%. All the other indices were trading in the red, with the Realty index off nearly 2% at 1,983. The IT space saw some weakness, as the index declined more than 1% at 5,928. Capital goods stocks, which traded firm yesterday, saw a decline, and the index slipped 1% to 3,566.

Of the 2,434 stocks traded on the BSE so far, 1,002 advanced, while 1,322 declined, indicating a negative market breadth.