By IANS
Mumbai : As the current financial year draws to a close, Indian stock markets Thursday remained subdued with the key market index, Sensex, closing in the red, in tune with mixed global cues.
The markets that opened flat on international cues failed to pick up in the latter half of the day. Sectors like IT, banking, capital goods, oil and gas and automobiles were out of investors’ favour, though realty and metals bounced back firmly into reckoning.
The 30-share sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened at 15,950.29 points and notched a high of 16,111.44 before closing at 4,839.45 points. It lost 71.27 points or 0.44 percent at the day’s close.
The S&P CNX Nifty index on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), which opened at 4,828.8 points, closed at 4,830.25 after touching the day’s high at 4,863.75 points.
At close, it registered a rise of 1.4 points or 0.03 percent.
The BSE Midcap index, which closed at 6,276.26 points, went up 5.23 points or 0.08 percent.
Similarly, the BSE Smallcap index, which closed at 7,526.78 points, went up 87.82 points or 1.18 percent.
On BSE, the market breadth was extremely low with low trading volumes. A total of 1,494 shares advanced, 1,220 shares declined and 61 shares remained unchanged.
Other Asian markets, barring FTSE and CAD, closed in the red.
The top gainers of the day included Hindustan Unilever Ltd at Rs.245.6, up 4.78 percent, DLF at Rs.678.2, up 3.1 percent, Cipla at Rs.212.9, up 3.53 percent, Hindalco at Rs.174.6, up 7.91 percent, Bharti Airtel at Rs.824.65, up 2.68 percent.
The top losers of the day were State Bank of India at Rs.1648.00, down 3.83 percent, Infosys at Rs.1,438, down 3.85 percent, Ranbaxy Labs at Rs.432.15, down 3.56 percent, TATA Motors at Rs.655.2, down 3.56 percent and Satyam at Rs.396, down 4.12 percent.