The Hindu Business Line : Sensex down by 71 points; auto, IT shares end lower

MUMBAI: The markets remained weak for the second consecutive day today and the benchmark Sensex closed lower by another 71 points with investors opting for low-key activity ahead of fourth quarter earning announcements in second week of April.

The 30-share Sensex on the Bombay Stock Exchange settled the day at 16,015.56, a fall of 71.27 points or 0.44 per cent from its last close. The index moved between 16,111.44 and 15869.09 points. However, 50-issue S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Excha nge survived to close in positive terrain at 4,830.25 from previous close of 4,828.85.

As for global indices, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index dropped by nearly 110 and 17 points respectively last night on poor economic data and worries over bank earnings as write-down concerns in upcoming quarters dampen financials.

Most of the Asian indices ended mixed with downward bias. European stock markets resumed higher by nearly one per cent, giving some relief to the local markets to regain some lost ground in later part of the day.

On BSE, banking, IT and auto counters were the prominent losers while buying in realty, FMCG and pharma shares cushioned the Sensex fall to some extent. Late buying in pivotals in the form of short coverings on the last day of March series helped Sensex to recover some of its initial losses but could not stem the fall in the index.

Marketmen said investors are waiting for the fourth quarter results to be announced from second week of April. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued to be net buyers for the last successive four sessions and they picked up shares worth Rs 282 .32 crore yesterday, as per provisional figures. - PTI

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