Sensex flat; M&M plunges 6%

The Sensex slipped into red and touched a low of 8,863. The index is now almost flat at 8,898 - down five points. Earlier in the day, the index had rallied to a high of 9,183 in opening trades.

Tata Power has surged over 3% to Rs 674.

Satyam, ONGC, HDFC Bank and Bharti Airtel have rallied around 2.5% each to Rs 236, Rs 696, Rs 852 and Rs 651, respectively.

DLF has gained 2% at Rs 195. Wipro, Hindalco and ICICI Bank have advanced around 1.5% each to Rs 238, Rs 53 and Rs 327, respectively.

Mahindra & Mahindra has plunged 6% to Rs 282. Ranbaxy has tumbled 4.8% to Rs 204.

Reliance has dropped over 3% to Rs 1,108. Tata Steel, TCS, SBI and Sterlite have shed around 2% each at Rs 153, Rs 510, Rs 1,125 and Rs 211, respectively.

Reliance Communications, ITC, HDFC and Infosys are down around 1.5% each at Rs 202, Rs 169, Rs 1,353 and Rs 1,180, respectively.

Out of 2,422 stocks traded so far, 1,184 have advanced, 1,150 have declined and 88 are unchanged.