The benchmark Sensex fell 42 points amid profit booking today, posting its first weekly drop in four, as investors turned cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) meeting.
The upcoming expiry of derivatives contracts and lower global cues also dampened sentiment.
Realty, capital goods, metal and auto sectors declined, while IT and teck indices moved up.
Larsen & Toubro and ITC pulled down the Sensex even as TCS and Infosys boosted it. The big losers on the index included Hindalco Industries and Tata Steel.
The 30-share S&P BSE Sensex resumed steady at 20,725.52 and hovered between 20,622.25 and 20,782.16 before finishing at 20,683.52, a loss of 41.91 points or 0.20 per cent. The index has lost 210.37 points during the past four days and was at the lowest closing level since October 17.
"It was yet another day of lacklustre trade as traders remained cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank meet scheduled on 29 October," said Amar Ambani, Head of Research at India Infoline. "RBI is expected to increase repo rate in the October 29 monetary policy by 25 basis points."
The 50-share CNX Nifty on the National Stock Exchange moved down 19.45 points, or 0.32 per cent, to finish at 6,144.90. The SX40 on the MCX Stock Exchange ended at 12,309.62, down 21.7 points.
Asian stock markets declined. Key indices in Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Japan and South Korea fell.
European markets were lower in early, with indices in France, Germany and UK down.
