Sensex up 21pts; market breadth -ive

The Sensex has steadied somewhat and is now up 21 points at 10,503.

Earlier in the day, the Sensex opened with a positive gap of 109 points at 10,591. The index touched a high of 10,625, but soon slipped into the negative zone.

Early morning weakness saw the index slip to a low of 10,185 - down 440 points from the day's high. Fresh buying at the lower levels saw the index rebound into the positive zone for a brief while.

The market breadth is fairly negative. Out of 1,827 stocks traded so far, 1,173 have declined, 613 have advanced and 41 are unchanged.