Equity indices close marginally lower, RCom stocks gain

Key Indian equity indices on Thursday provisionally closed on a flat-to-negative note on the back of broadly negative global cues, along with heavy selling in auto stocks.

Automobile major Mahindra and Mahindra -- which plunged over 3 per cent -- was the top loser on the BSE followed by Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki, Hindustan Unilever and Bajaj Auto.

Telcom stocks like Reliance Communications (RCom) (up 4.05 per cent) and Idea Cellular (up 3.37 per cent) closed higher after a Delhi court acquitted all the accused in the alleged multi-thousand crore rupee 2G spectrum scandal.

The wider Nifty50 of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) inched lower by 3.90 points or 0.04 per cent to provisionally close (at 3.30 p.m.) at 10,440.30 points.

The barometer 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE, which opened at 33,826.25 points, closed at 33,756.28 points -- down 21.10 points or 0.06 per cent -- from its previous close.

The Sensex touched a high of 33,860.99 points and a low of 33,707.80 points during the intra-day trade.

However, the BSE market breadth remained was bullish as 1,701 stocks advanced as compared to 1,014 declines.

On Wednesday, the key indices closed in the red as weak global cues, coupled with heavy selling pressure in banking and auto stocks and huge outflow of foreign funds, hampered investors' risk-taking appetite.

On a closing basis, the Sensex closed at 33,777.38 points -- down 59.36 points or 0.18 per cent and the Nifty50 closed lower by 19 points or 0.18 per cent at 10,444.20 points.

The BSE Sensex touched a record high of 33,956.31 points on an intra-day basis, while the NSE Nifty50 edged higher to a new intra-day level of 10,494.45 points.

--IANS

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