Markets open in negative zone; banking, auto stocks major drags

New Delhi: Markets opened on a negative note on Monday led by losses in banking and auto stocks.

The BSE Sensex was down 203.53 points or 0.54 percent to 37,181.46 in early trade while the NSE Nifty dropped 60.45 points or 0.55 percent to 11,015.45.

Major losers in the Sensex pack were Asian Paint, Yes Bank, RIL, Tata Motors, HDFC, Tata Steel, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Maruti, M&M, LT, Axis Bank, falling upto 2.31 percent. Major gainers were ONGC, TCS, Sun Pharma, Tech Mahindra, HUL, Powergrid, HCL Tech and Infosys, rising upto 2.33 percent.

MSCI`s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.36%. China`s blue-chip index eased 0.2% while Hong Kong`s Hang Seng index faltered about 1%. E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 were off 0.5% while those for the Dow fell 0.4%, a Reuters report said.

With Agency Inputs