Market momentum turned flat amid intense volatility on bouts of buying and selling despite a positive start in early trade after sentiments turned highly cautious ahead of the Union Budget tomorrow.
Shares of realty, power, auto, capital goods, metal, IT, tech and healthcare sectors succumbed to profit-booking.
While, banking, oil & gas and FMCG segments witnessed buying activity.
The 30-share Sensex opened higher at 25,615.28 and moved widely between 25,683.97 and 25,369.21 and was trading flat at 25,577.32 at 1010 hours, down 4.79 points, or 0.02 per cent, from its last close.
The NSE 50-share Nifty was also trading lower by 3.70 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 7,619.50 at 1010 hours.
Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 422.72 crore yesterday, as per provisional data from stock exchanges.
Major losers are Tata Motors (1.95 per cent), Tata Power (1.56 per cent), M&M (1.53 per cent), HeroMotoCorp (1.39 per cent), Dr Reddy's (1.25 per cent) and Bajaj Auto (1.24 per cent).
However, the gainers were Hindalco Inds (4.59 per cent), GAIL (2.41 per cent), Tata Steel (2.30 per cent), BHEL (1.50 per cent) and ITC (1.04 per cent).
Asian stocks traded lower amid decline in global equities triggered by concerns that equity valuations are too high.
Key benchmark indices in China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan were down by 0.25-1.27 per cent while Indonesia's Jakarta Composite rose 0.72 per cent.
