Sensex drops over 200 points; banking, financials drag

New Delhi: Markets opened on a higher note but shed its gain in early trade led by losses in banking and financials.

The BSE Sensex fell 206.13 points or 0.44 percent to 46,684.21 in early trade. Similarly, the NSE Nifty dropped 65.70 points or 0.48 percent to 13,675.00.

Major losers in the Sensex pack were IndusInd Bank, ONGC, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Finance, HDFC, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj FInserve, Maruti, ITC and NTPC, falling upto 3.89 percent. On the other hand, major gainers were Infosys, HCL Tech, TCS, Nestle, HUL, Bajaj Auto, LT, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra and Asian Paint, rising upto 2.02 percent.

Among Asian peers, MSCI`s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.3% from Thursday`s record. Still, it`s on track for a seventh consecutive week of gains - the longest such streak in about a year. Japan`s Nikkei dipped 0.2%, facing strong resistance around 27,000. US S&P 500 futures eased 0.15%, a day after their underlying index gained 0.58% to close at an all-time high of 3,722.48, a Reuters report said.

In the previous session on Thursday, markets closed at fresh all-time highs for the fifth session on the trot. After touching its lifetime intra-day high of 46,992.57, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 223.88 points or 0.48 per cent up at 46,890.34 -- its new closing record. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 58 points or 0.42 per cent to a new closing high of 13,740.70. It hit a lifetime peak of 13,773.25 during the day.