Sensex opens down

The Sensex has opened down 51 points at 17,723 and the Nifty started the day shedding 27 points at 5,284. In the broader markets, the midcaps is down 0.7% at 6,537 while the smallcaps shed 0.4% at 7,995, outperforming the Sensex, down 0.6%

On the BSE sectoral charts, all the indices has started in the negative. Realty down 3% followed by Metal and Auto down 1% each are the top losers in the opening trades. The least affected are FMCG and Oil & GAs down 0.3% each.

Mahindra & Mahindra, ONGC up 1% each are the top gainers in the opening trades followed by RIL and Hindustan Unilever gaining 0.3% each round off the gainers list.

DLF, Reliance Communications, Hindalco, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Bharti Airtel and Tata Steel shedding 2% - 4% are the major losers on the Sensex.

On the Asian front, China raised interest rates by 25 basis points late on Tuesday, its second increase in just over six weeks. The timing was a surprise, coming on the final day of the Lunar New Year holiday, but investors had been expecting further tightening from Beijing to rein in stubbornly high inflation. The Shanghai Composite is down 0.3% at 2,790.

Japan's Nikkei is up 0.3% after touching a 9-month high at 10,659. Japan has been Asia's best performing market so far this year as healthier corporate profits and worries about building inflationary pressures have encouraged investors to switch money from fast growing emerging markets i.e. last year's star performers to developed market equities.

Hang Seng, Jakarta Composite,KLSE Composite, Straits Times, Seoul Composite and Taiwan Weighted shed 0.4% - 0.9%.

The market breadth is very negative. Of the total 1521 stocks traded on the BSE, 1154 stocks has declined while 331 has advanced.