Markets flat in late-morning trades

After having witnessed subdued trades, the markets have trimmed their losses and are trading flat in late-morning deals. The BSE Sensex is at 17,200, down 58 points and the Nifty is at 5,225, down 18 points.

Earlier in the day, the BSE benchmark index touched the day's high at 17,246 and the day's low at 17,136.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei average fell after rallying 2.4% the previous day to its highest close since last year's massive earthquake, as a majority of the companies in the index went ex-dividend. The index is currently down 15 at 10,160. The Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite indices have shed 1-2% each.

On the sectoral front, BSE Consumer Durables, Realty, Metal, Bankex and IT indices have shed close to 1-2% each.

From among the consumer durables stocks, Gitanjali Gems, Titan Industries and VIP Industries, down 1-4% each, are the notable losers.

BSE Capital Goods and Healthcare indices are leading the gains, up nearly 1% each.

Crompton Greaves, Alstom Projects India and Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Company, up 1-2% each, are the noptable gainers from among the Capital Goods stocks.

Tata Power and Gail (India) have gained nearly 1% each, and are the top gainers on the Sensex. Other prominent gainers include BHEL, Larsen & Toubro, up 1% each. Reliance Industries is trading marginally higher at Rs 734.

The losers from the pack are Sterlite Industries, Hindalco Industries, Bajaj Auto, Wipro and Jindal Steel, down 1-2% each.

Among individual stocks, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories has moved higher by 2% at Rs 1,712 on launching Quetiapine fumarate tablets in the US market from March 27. “The company has launched Quetiapine fumarate tablets, a bioequivalent generic version of SEROQUEL tablets in the US market on March 27, 2012 following the approval by the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA),” Dr Reddy’s Laboratories said in a filing to the stock exchanges.

Mahindra Ugine Steel Company is trading higher by 5% at Rs 54.05 after its board approved the sale of excess land of 65 acres in Pune, currently valued at around Rs 89 crore.

L&T Finance Holdings is trading higher by 2% at Rs 50.55 after the company said its unit L&T Finance has executed definitive agreements to acquire the mutual fund business of Fidelity in India for an undisclosed amount.

Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) has slipped 5% to Rs 625 on reports that the Chief of Army Staff General V K Singh said he was offered a bribe by Lieutenant General Tejinder Singh on behalf of Tatra and Vetra, suppliers of the vehicles to the company.

The overall market breadth is negative as 1,412 stocks have declined against 993 advancing ones, on the BSE.