Blue-chip selling unabated

STOCKS REPORT

Bargain buying in selected stocks at lower levels helped the market recover from the day's lows, but the benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex ended lower for the third consecutive day.

Investors remained sellers in blue chips and midcaps for the third straight day, while buying was witnessed in paper sector stocks.

The 30-share benchmark BSE Sensex ended 4.97 points lower at 6584.32. The broader 50-share NSE S&P CNX Nifty index shed 6.35 points to end at 2055.55.

In the BSE Sensex basket, 21 out of the 30 scrips closed lower. The breadth of the market was positive with 1,435 gainers to 985 losers. Volumes on the bourses too were modest with total turnover of Rs 2,095 crore compared to Rs 2,202.66 crore on Thursday.

Brokers said, markets are trading cautiously with activity limited to specific stocks.

Among the sectoral indices, the BSE Bankex ended with gains of 0.66 per cent to close at 3760.83. The gainers were ICICI Bank was up 1.30 per cent to Rs 381.75 and HDFC Bank was up 1.23 per cent to Rs 565.

Automobile stocks witnessed a mixed trend with the frontliners losing on selling pressure. Tata Motors was down 2.04 per cent to Rs 478.60, Maruti Udyog was down 2.19 per cent to Rs 462.75, while Hindustan Motors ended higher nearly 3 per cent higher to Rs 33.40.

A fund manager said, "At current levels, one needs to be cautiously optimistic with the budget just round the corner. Profit booking at higher levels in frontline stocks is pulling the market down in the past few days. The correction was overdue and its should help markets to consolidate at current levels."

The usually defensive pharma and technology sector too witnessed profit booking in today's trading. Pharma major, Dr Reddy's Labs was down 1.58 per cent to Rs 728.75, Cipla was down 0.91 per cent to Rs 272 and Ranbaxy Labs was down 1.30 per cent to Rs 1,025.15.

Tech pivotals Wipro was down 0.93 per cent to Rs 690.90, Satyam Computer was down 0.86 per cent to Rs 404.75, TCS was down 0.56 per cent to Rs 1,373.30, while Infosys Technologies ended 0.22 per cent lower at Rs 2,165.55.

Paper stocks continue to be in the limelight. JK Paper was up 10.67 per cent Rs 52.40, West Coast Paper was up 6.07 per cent to Rs 209.70, Ballarpur Industries was up 7.16 per cent to Rs 100.25, Orient Paper was up 7.11 per cent to Rs 137.15 while Star Paper ended 3.23 per cent higher to Rs 54.40.