BSE Sensex slips 108 points, investors wary

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The benchmark index fell 0.64 percent or 108.04 points to close at 16,752.86, with 18 components ending lower. The index hit a high of 17,085.63 and a low of 16,697.47 during intraday trade.

The index, which hit a record high of 21,206.77 on Jan. 10 and climbed 10.5 percent in April, is down about 18.20 percent this year.

The biggest loser was ONGC, slipping 3.08 percent to Rs.997.10.

IT stocks Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys Technologies fell 2.66 percent, 2.33 percent and 1.43 percent to Rs.494.20, Rs.905.70 and Rs.1747.20 respectively.

Telecom majors Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications declined 2.03 percent and 0.78 percent to Rs.821.25 and Rs.545.65 respectively.

Auto majors Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki shed 0.40 percent and 0.05 percent to end at Rs.665.85 and Rs.770.15 respectively.

India's largest mortgage lender Housing Development Finance Corporation lost 1.49 percent to Rs.2658.20 while real estate major DLF declined 1.11 percent to close at Rs.615.

Top listed petrochemical refiner Reliance Industries (RIL) and engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) fell 2.08 percent and 0.71 percent to Rs.2501.45 and Rs.2814.75 respectively.

Other losers were ACC (down 2.66 percent to Rs.683), Ranbaxy Laboratories (down 1.84 percent to Rs.485.10), Grasim Industries (down 1.64 percent to Rs.2218.50), Hindustan Unilever (down 0.59 percent to Rs.245.65), BHEL (down 0.51 percent to Rs.1739.30) and Cipla (down 0.12 percent to Rs.207.55).

Top gainers were Hindalco and Jaiprakash Associates which climbed 2.83 percent and 2.78 percent respectively to Rs.179.95 and Rs.253.25.

Financial stocks ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and State Bank of India advanced 1.08 percent, 0.72 percent and 0.28 percent to Rs.887.85, Rs.1482.20 and Rs.1668 respectively.

Reliance Infrastructure rose 1.78 percent to Rs.1381.25 while Satyam Computer Services advanced 1.31 percent to Rs.495.95.

Other gainers were Tata Steel (up 1.01 percent to Rs.851.30), ITC (up 0.74 percent to Rs.225.45), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 0.64 percent to Rs.666.70) and Ambuja Cements (up 0.41 percent to Rs.111.30).

Among the sectoral indices, Consumer Durables counter was the best performer, gaining 1.39 percent while Oil & Gas counter turned out to be the worst performer, dipping 2.56 percent.

The BSE Midcap index gained 0.16 percent to 6956.81 while the Smallcap index shed 0.07 percent to close at 8397.71.

The market breadth was slightly positive as 1410 shares advanced, 1305 shares declined and 69 shares remained unchanged.

The broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) fell 1.09 percent or 54.85 points to 4957.80. The index touched a high of 5066 and a low of 4943.75 during intraday trade.

According to market analysts, traders were jittery on news that India's industrial production growth had fallen to a six-year low of 3 percent even as inflation touched a 42 months high of 6.71 percent.

Elsewhere in South Asia, Pakistan's Karachi 100 rose 1.8 percent at 14,542.50, while Sri lanka's Colombo All-Share and Bangladesh's Dhaka Stock Exchange slipped 0.68 percent and 1.97 percent to 2,613.89 and 3026.24 respectively.

The major Asian markets were upbeat on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.53 percent to 13,953.73; Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.95 percent to 25,552.77; Taiwan's Taiex advanced 1.81 percent to 8989.53; South Korea's Kospi soared 1.05 percent to 1842.80; Indonesia's Jakarta Composite jumped 1.72 percent to 2418.90; and Singapore's Straits Times ended up 0.73 percent to 3203.42.

However, China's Shanghai Composite fell 1.84 percent to 3560.24 and Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite slipped 0.51 percent to 1286.54.