Mumbai: The BSE benchmark Sensex declined by over 57 points in early trade on Thursday as investors preferred to book profits after two sessions of gains.
Besides, a subdued trend on Asian bourses also dampened the trading sentiments here.
The 30-share barometer fell by 57.26 points, or 0.29 percent, to 19,418.74. The index had gained nearly 232 points in the previous two sessions.
Stocks of realty, consumer durables and banking sectors fell due to profit-booking.
Similarly, the wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty shed 16.25 points, or 0.27 percent, to 5,913.35.
Brokers said besides profit-booking by speculators after recent gains, a weak trend in the Asian trade following overnight losses at the US market influenced the sentiments here.
In the Asian region, Japan's Nikkei Index shed 1.03 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index down 0.28 percent in early trade today. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.74 percent down in yesterday's trade.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, December 20, 2012, 09:51