Sensex pares initial gains in choppy trade

The BSE Sensex surrendered its initial gains to trade flat in late morning trade today amid buying in energy, realty, IT and consumer durables counters.

Lack of definite domestic cues and a mixed trend at other Asian markets affected momentum.

Profit-booking was seen in telecom, utilities, power, energy, healthcare, auto and FMCG sectors.

The 30-share index was trading at 35,553.16, showing a marginal gain of 5.83 points, or 0.02 per cent at 1055 hrs.

The broader Nifty-50 index was trading at 10,775.25, up 3.20 points, or 0.03 per cent.

Major gainers were ICICI Bank 1.64 per cent, Adani Ports 1.48 per cent, Reliance 1.07 per cent, Vedanta 0.61 per cent and Infosys 0.45 per cent.

Losers included PowerGrid 2.03 per cent, ONGC 1.66 per cent, SBI 0.82 per cent, M&M 0.75 per cent and SunPharma 0.74 per cent.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 2,442.61 crore on net basis, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities to the tune of Rs 1,473.65 crore yesterday, provisional data showed.

Overseas, Asian markets were mixed, driven by uncertainty surrounding trade relations between the US and China.

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its seventh consecutive daily decline yesterday.