The market remained on a weak wicket due to prevailing political situation and its impact on pace of reforms besides ongoing uncertainty in Cyprus as the NSE benchmark CNX Nifty dropped to fresh four-month low today.
The overall sentiment in the market remained cautious and the 50-share index fell for the sixth straight session in the absence of any strong fundamental trigger and fears that Government may be forced to call early elections after DMK withdrew support to the UPA coalition this week.
Moreover, serious investors remained on sidelines ahead of the holiday-truncated week, which coincides with the expiry of March contracts.
After a sluggish start, the market picked up steam in late morning trade supported by firm buying in select heavyweights and short-covering, but it mostly moved in a tight range as investors booked profits at every rise.
The market later showed some resilience, helping the index to rebound from day's low and end with minor losses.
Technology, bank, pharma, FMCG and infra sectors saw good amount of selling. After recent unwinding, metal and auto counters attracted heavy buying.
Globally, Asian stocks ended lower on the back of deteriorating situation in Cyprus and worsening economic outlook for the eurozone.
The Nifty oscillated between a high of 5,691.45 and a low of 5,631.80 before concluding at 5,651.35, a modest fall of 7.40 points, or 0.13 per cent, from the last close.
DLF, Ranbaxy, SBIN, Tata Steel, TCS, Bharti Airtel, M&M, Tata Motors, Axis Bank and JP Associates were among the top Nifty losers.
The notable gainers included IDFC, Ambuja Cement, Bajaj Auto, Bank of Baroda, Jindal Steel, Jindal Steel, ACC, Siemens, Reliance Infra, Hindalco and Tata Power.
Turnover in the cash segment dropped to Rs 10,352.08 crore from Rs 12,159.33 crore yesterday. A total of 6,891.02 lakh shares changed hands in 61,49,359 trades. Total market capitalisation stood at Rs 61,80,600 crore.
