Markets recover from day's lows

Markets recovered from the morning lows but continued to trade in the negative zone, the Sensex was marginally lower by 10 points at 18,317 and the S&P CNX Nifty was at 5487 lower by 7 points.

Sterlite Industries, BHEL, Tata Steel, J P Associates, Reliance Communication, TCS, Infosys and Hindalco were among the losers. On the other hand ONGC was the top gainer on the Sensex, the stock was trading higher by 1.3% at Rs 279. Tata Power, ITC, Hero Honda, L&T, ICICI Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Cipla and Reliance Industries were also trading higher by 0.3-1% each.

BSE FMCG index was the top sectoral gainer, up 0.55% or 19 points at 3509, Healthcare index added 31 points to 5859 and the Oil & Gas index was at 9686 higher by 45 points. Realty, capital goods, PSU and banking stocks also witnessed some buying. Meanwhile metal, IT, power and auto stocks witnessed some mild selling pressure.

United Breweries was the top gainer among the FMCG stocks, the stocks was higher by 3.6% to Rs 491, followed by United Spirits, Tata Global Beverages, Colgate Palmolive, ITC and Godrej Consumer Products, higher by 0.4-1.5% each.

Among the metal stocks JSW Steel was the top loser followed by Sterlite Industries, Hindustan Zinc, Tata Steel, Hindalco, NALCO and SAIL.

The broader markets showcased recovery but were trading on a flat note, the BSE mid-cap index was higher by 2 points at 6602 and the small-cap index was at 7992 higher by 3 points.

The overall market breadth turned marginally positive as 1118 stocks advanced while 1008 stocks declined.