Sensex snaps gaining streak, ends lower

Mumbai  :  A benchmark index of the Indian equities markets Thursday closed 0.26 percent down, breaking a three days of consecutive gains to close below the 20,000-level mark, as traders booked profits ahead of the crucial industrial production and inflation data expected soon.

The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) which crossed the psychological mark of 20,000 points Wednesday remained range-bound during intra-day trade.

Stocks like information technology (IT), technology, media and entertainment (TECk), public sector undertaking (PSU) and fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) gained. However, healthcare, metal, consumer durables, oil and gas and bank stocks plummeted.

The index, which opened in the positive at 20,015.86 points, closed at 19,939.04 points, down 51.14 points or 0.26 percent from its previous day close at 19,990.18 points.

The Sensex touched a high of 20,058.48 points and low of 19,903.83 points in the intra-day trade.

The wider 50-scrip S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended the day’s trade 0.43 percent or 25.75 points up at 6,069.30 points.

The BSE IT index was up 52.14 points followed by TECk index, up 18.20 points, PSU index, up 13.61 points, and FMCG index, up 6.74 points.

The BSE Healthcare index ended 144.17 points down, while the automobile index closed 130.20 points lower, followed by consumer durables index, down 66.69 points, oil and gas index, down 54.53 points and the bank index, down 47.29 points.

Of the 30 sensitive stocks on the BSE, 12 closed in positive territory. These included State Bank of India (SBI), up 1.81 percent at Rs.2,294.35; Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), up 1.52 percent at Rs.1,498.85; Wipro, up 0.80 percent at Rs.354.95; Hindalco Inds, up 0.54 percent at Rs.103.30 and ITC, up 0.48 percent at Rs.344.45.

The major Sensex losers were: Sun Pharma, down 3.73 percent at Rs.948.45; Jindal Steel, down 3.42 percent at Rs.318; Sterlite Inds, down 2.28 percent at Rs.96.55; Cipla, down 1.47 percent at Rs.400.10; and Reliance Industries, down 1.33 percent at Rs.818.10.
Among other Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.66 percent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng went down by 0.14 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite Index closed lower by 0.59 percent.

At the closing bell here, Britain’s FTSE 100 was trading 0.07 percent up and so was German DAX, up 0.11 percent. The French CAC 40 was also ruling up 0.83 percent.

Photo  : AFP