Markets trade on a flat note

Markets opened marginally in the green, with large caps trading mostly flat. The Sensex toched a high of 18,065 but fell from there. The index was up 32 points at 18,017. Nifty was up 15 points at 5,412.

The Asian markets were in the red, ignoring cues from Wall Street. The Nikkei was flat at 9,410. Hang Seng dropped 0.5% to 21,856.

US stocks closed on a mixed note as stronger than expected unemploymenet and housing market helped investors get over weakness in the technical sectors. The Dow gained 0.5% to 11,962. S&P 500 added 0.2% at 1,267. Nasdaq, however, slipped 0.3% at 2,623.

On Thursday, Sensex dipped below the 18K mark on higher inflation and the RBI's decision to raise key rates. The Sensex ended down 146 points to its lowest in three weeks to end at 17,986. Nifty was down 1% at 5,397.

The Reserve Bank of India raised the repo and reverse repo rates by 25 bps points each. The Repo and Reverse repo stands at 6.5% and 7.5%, respectively.

BSE metal index gained 1% at 14,594. Realty, healthcare and auto indices advanced 0.5% each.

However IT stocks slipped in trades. Infosys slipped 1% to Rs 2,775. TCS, Tech Mahindra and HCL Tech were down marginally.

HDFC dropped 1% to Rs 641. ONGC and NTPC among PSU stocks, were down 1% each at Rs 266 and Rs 175, respectively. Market heavyweight, Reliance, dipped 0.6% to Rs 883. Mahindra & Mahindra dropped marginally in trades.

Meanwhile, Tata Steel led gains at Rs 567 - up 2.5%. Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Infra and Sterlite added around 1% each. Cipla, HDFC Bank, Reliance Communications were also up.

Among other news, the employee's strike at Maruti Suzuki's Manesar plant has been called off. Maruti shares were up 2.5% at Rs 1,223. Auto ancillary stocks moved up on the news. Amtek Auto was up 1% at Rs 171.