Sensex, Nifty edge down; Reliance, Infosys fall

By Jessica Kuruthukulangara

Indian shares traded slightly lower on Tuesday, weighed down by market heavyweights such as Reliance Industries Ltd and Infosys Ltd, with investors now focussed on September-quarter GDP data, due on Thursday.

Analysts anticipate volatility in the markets amid hopes of a recovery in GDP for the quarter, especially since economic growth slid to a three-year low in April-June.

"Markets are steadily moving up and there will be pull-backs on odd days," said Sudhakar Pattabiraman, head of research operations at MarketSmith, which is part of financial services provider William O'Neil.

"Investors are usually cautious ahead of major data," he added.

Asian shares also fell, stepping back from decade highs as Chinese stocks stumbled for a second straight session. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3 percent.

The broader NSE Nifty was down 0.13 percent at 10,386.10 as of 0604 GMT, while the benchmark BSE Sensex was 0.16 percent lower at 33,668.88.

The Nifty energy index fell about 1 percent with Reliance Industries slipping 0.7 percent on profit-booking, after three straight sessions of gains.

The Nifty IT index was down 0.3 percent, on track to snap a three-day gaining streak. Infosys fell 1 percent, after rising in four sessions out of the last five.

Meanwhile, financial stocks rose, with the Nifty finance index rising as much as 0.4 percent to hit a record high.

Housing Development Finance Corp Ltd climbed as much as 1.4 percent while HDFC Bank Ltd was up 0.6 percent. Both stocks led gains in the Nifty.

(Reporting by Jessica Kuruthukulangara in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair)