Sensex down 14 pts in early trades

The Sensex opened on a flat note at Rs 7,303, but firmed up on selective buying to touch a high of 7,338. However, selling pressure in banking, tech and other select counters dragged the index into the red to a low of 7,289.

The Sensex is now down 14 points at 7,290, while the Nifty has gained nine points to 2,230.

HDFC Bank has dropped 1.75% (Rs 11) to Rs 646, while ICICI Bank has shed 1.71% (Rs 8) to Rs 459. SBI, however, is marginally up at Rs 719.

Infosys (down Rs 7 to Rs 2,213) and Satyam (down Rs 3 to Rs 493) have opened weak, while TCS has lost  a per cent (Rs 9) to Rs 1,284. Wipro, however, is up a per cent (Rs 6) at Rs 708.

L&T has shed 1.36% (Rs 17) to Rs 1,323. Hindalco, which announced a stock split yesterday, has gained 1.12% (Rs 14) to Rs 1,245.

ONGC and ITC are trading on a flat note at Rs 943 and Rs 1,745, respectively. Reliance Industries is down a tad at Rs 638.

ACC has gained 1.90% (Rs 8) to Rs 429. While Grasim has logged 1.13% gains (Rs 12) to Rs 1,104, Gujarat Ambuja is up 1.43% at Rs 64.

Bajaj, which inched marginally lower yesterday, has added 1.13% (Rs 16) to Rs 1,400 in opening trades. Hero Honda at Rs 615 (up Rs 7 or 1.23%), Maruti at Rs 460 (up Rs 3) and Tata Motors at Rs 469 (up Rs 3) have commenced with steady gains.