A government buckling under pressure to suspend FDI in retail, a trimmed growth forecast for the economy and global jitters ahead of a crucial EU summit took its toll on the markets. Both the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty ended on a lower note in the week gone by, with the former falling 3.7 per cent and the latter, 3.6 per cent. The CNX 500, representing the broader markets, reflected similar sentiments, closing the week with a 3.3 per cent fall. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices however, fared slightly better than the bellwethers, falling only by 2.5 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively.

Among the BSE sectoral indices, the Capital Goods Index was the worst hit, followed by the Realty, Metal, Oil and Gas and Power indices. While the Capital Goods index was down 5.4 per cent, the other four lost between 4 and 5 per cent over this week. Technology stocks were the only ones to hold fort, with the BSE IT Index gaining about six points over the previous week's close.

Only 88 of the 500 stocks constituting the BSE 500 Index posted gains. SKS Micro Finance led this pack, moving up by 16 per cent. News about a restructuring involving the creation of a step-down subsidiary for its non-micro finance business and about the company's plans to bring in better client protection practices buoyed the stock.

Close on its heels was the stock of Madhucon Projects , which went up 15 per cent. The company recently won a large EPC contract worth Rs 422 crore.

After taking a strong hit owing to concerns regarding the pledged stake of its promoters, Parsvanth Developers witnessed some value buying this week. The stock rose by almost 10 per cent.

Shares of Dhanlaxmi Bank surged 8 per cent after the bank reached a settlement with its striking employees.

The stock of Piramal Health inched up 3 per cent following shareholders' approval for the company's entry into new, high potential businesses including financial services, IT and security systems.

Responding to the government's U-turn on FDI in retail, the stocks of Pantaloon Retail, Shoppers' Stop and Trent shed 15, 8 and 7 per cent respectively.

Debt worries continue to haunt the Shree Renuka Sugars stock, which fell by 13 per cent this week. Bajaj Hindustan and Balrampur Chini , other players in the sugar space, lost 7 per cent and 6 per cent respectively.

Following an earnings downgrade by Credit Suisse, telecom major Idea Cellular was pushed down by 11 per cent. The stock of Bharti Airtel too lost 8 per cent

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