The 30-share barometer resumed lower at 20,017.20 but recovered immediately to 20,072.28 on sustained buying by funds and retailers in oil and gas, PSUs, IT and banking sector, after Finance Minister P Chidambaram reaffirmed government's commitment to reforms.
However, it declined afterwards to 19,889.25 before quoting at 19,925.90 at 1030 hrs due to fresh selling pressure.
The NSE 50-share Nifty also moved down by 32.05 points of 0.53 per cent to 6,022.25 at 1030 hrs.
Major losers were Tata Motors (6.79 per cent), Gail India (3.12 per cent), M&M (2.69 per cent), Sterlite Ind (2.57 per cent), Hindalco (2.25 per cent), Tata Power (1.64 per cent), Jindal Steel (1.50 per cent), Cipla (1.43 per cent) and Hero Motocorp (1.11 per cent).
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 802.62 crs yesterday as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
Most Asian stocks fell in the early trade after a report showed China's manufacturing exceeded estimates. Key benchmark indices in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea fell by 0.07 per cent to 0.46 per cent, while indices in Japan and Singapore rose by 0.32 per cent to 0.85 per cent.
