The Sensex has ended (provisional) at 17,681 - down 238 points. Nifty ends down 86 points at 5,378.
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(Updated at 1433 hrs)
Markets continued to remain weak dragged by rate sensitive shares post the announcement of RBI monetary policy review and the Economic Survey. The Sensex has dipped 252 points at 17,667. Nifty is down 88 points at 5,376.
The government pegged inflation to b at 6.5-7% by Match 2012 in the economic survey conducted today. FY12 industrial growth has been pegged at 4-5% while the same for 2013 is at 7.6%.
Asian shares eased on Thursday on renewed concerns about Chinese growth, but a brighter global economic outlook underpinned the dollar and kept investor risk appetite intact.
The rate sensitive sectors such as automobiles, real estate and banking were trading lower by 2.5% after the Reserve Bank of India kept key policy rates unchanged in its mid-quarter policy review today. The cash reserve ratio (CRR) of scheduled banks were kept unchanged at 4.75% of their net demand and time liabilities while the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) is at unchanged at 8.5%.
Market heavyweight, Reliance, dipped into red and was the biggest dragger among Sensex stocks. Shares of RIL traded down 2.2% at Rs 796.
Banking names such as ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank declined 2.5% each. BHEL, Coal India, ONGC and Larsen & Toubro declined 2-3% each.
Meanwhile, Hindustan Unilever, from the FMCG pack held on to gains and advanced 1% at Rs 385. Tata Motors, GAIL, NTPC and TCS added half a per cent each.
Japan's Kobe Steel is planning to buy a small stake in steel pipemaker Man Industries. The stock has surged 1.8% at Rs 122.
Punj Lloyd has bagged a contract for mechanical works worth about RS 153 crore from Singapore's SK Engineering and Construction Co. The stocks, however, has dipped 4.3% at Rs 57.
Reliance Communications and Reliance Power will move out of the National Stock Exchange's 50share Nifty index with effect from April 27, and would be replaced by Asian Paints and Bank of Baroda. Reliance Communications has shed 3.7% at Rs 95 while Reliance Power has dropped 3% to Rs 132.
BSE market breadth was fairly negative. Out of 2,838 stocks traded, 1,823 shares declined while 884 shares advanced in trades.
