Sensex slips 57 points on profit booking; ends in red for second week

The 30-share index had soared about 162 points to hit a high of 29,584.34 in early deals, but surrendered gains in mid-session selling.

Benchmark Sensex frittered away a good start to finish 57 points lower today, with investors choosing to book profits amid mixed global cues.

The 30-share index had soared about 162 points to hit a high of 29,584.34 in early trade, but surrendered gains in mid-session selling, which dragged it down to 29,259.42. The barometer finally ended at 29,365.30, down 57.09 points or 0.19 percent.

The broader NSE Nifty closed lower by 17 points, or 0.19 percent, at 9,119.40 after shuttling between 9,183.65 and 9,088.75.

On a weekly basis, the BSE Sensex fell 96.15 points, or 0.32 percent, and the Nifty 31.40 points, or 0.34 percent, sliding for the second straight week.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 168.84 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.

"The quarterly results till date have painted a mixed picture while concerns over upcoming French election is adding risk to the market. A hawkish tone of RBI in its latest minutes has also added pressure on the downside," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Among sectoral indices, the BSE FMCG fell the most at 0.97 percent, followed by healthcare 0.76 percent, metal 0.59 percent, auto 0.41 percent, IT 0.36 percent, teck 0.21 percent and PSU 0.17 percent.

Realty, power, capital goods, oil & gas and consumer durables closed higher by up to 2.37 percent.

Sun Pharma emerged as the top loser in the Sensex pack by plunging 2.41 percent to Rs 640.05, followed by Cipla (1.84 percent).

Other laggards were ITC (1.81 percent), Adani Ports (1.72 percent), Power Grid (1.44 percent), Wipro (1.36 percent), ICICI Bank (1.34 percent), Lupin (1.31 percent), M&M (1.28 percent), Coal India (1.12 percent), Maruti Suzuki (1.10 percent), HUL (1.08 percent) and SBI (0.97 percent).

HDFC Bank was the biggest gainer, rising 2.38 percent to Rs 1,496.75 after the company report an 18.2 percent growth in net profit at Rs 3,990 crore for the March quarter.

Reliance Industries remained at the centre of brisk activity and surged 2.22 percent to Rs 1,399.75.

NTPC, Asian Paints, L&T, Hero MotoCorp and ONGC too ended in green, rising up to 1.83 percent.

Outshining the Sensex, the broader markets put up a better show, with the small-cap index rising 0.25 percent and mid-cap gaining 0.02 percent.

Globally, US markets ended higher overnight amid revived hopes of tax cuts, while Bank of Japan said it will keep accommodative policy in place.

Asian markets were mostly mixed with Hong Kong's Hang Seng falling 0.06 percent, while Japan's Nikkei rose 1.03 percent. China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.03 percent.

Europe was in the grip of weakness in early session, with Paris CAC 40 falling 0.37 percent after the latest terror attack on the city, while Frankfurt's DAX slid 0.16 percent. London's FTSE shed 0.17 percent.