The markets have remained lacklustre in the past hour in the absence of any cues from the global front. The Sensex is at 18,744, lower by 69 points and the Nifty is at 5628, down 22 points. On the broader market front, the midcap index is virtually unchanged and the smallcap index is up 29 points.
Asian shares are mixed in mid-day trades as investors are wary about Europe's sovereign-debt problems. The key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, China and Indonesia are down, while Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are marginally higher.
Auto and metals are the only sectoral indices in the green, while realty is the top sectoral loser following the gains of the previous session.
M&M has zoomed by 1.4% at Rs 711 to emerge as the leading gainer on the BSE. Bajaj Auto has added 1.2% at Rs 1437, Tata Motors has added 0.9% at Rs 1021 and Maruti Suzuki has added 0.7% at Rs 1165. And Tata Steel has gained 1.3% at Rs 604.
On the other hand, BHEL has weakened by 3.4% at Rs 1976, RCom has shed 2.2% at Rs 98 and DLF has lost 1.5% at Rs 230. ICICI Bank has broken its 9-day winning streak, shedding 0.3% at Rs 1095 and RIL has lost 0.4% at Rs 864.
The market breadth is positive. Out of 2511 stocks traded on the BSE, there are 1283 advancing stocks as against 1117 declines.
