Sensex falls 76.71 points

Mumbai, Jan 28 (Agency) The equity market remained weak for another day as the BSE Sensex on Friday slipped 76.71 points to settle at 57,200.23 in a highly volatile market. Selling was witnessed in auto, bankex, capital goods and finance stocks amid a mixed trend in the Asian market. The Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) too eased 8.20 points at 17,101.95. Tumbling down over 500 points on Thursday, the day opened on a strong note at 57,795.11, jumping 519 points. It surged 808 points at 58,084.33, the day’s high. In late trade it erased earlier gains and finished negative at 57,200.23, sliding 76.71 points from its previous close. It dropped nearly 157 points at 57,119.28, the day’s low.

The Sensex registered the day’s high and low at 58,084.33 and 57,119.28 respectively. The Nifty recorded the day’s high and low at 17,373.50 and 17,077.10 respectively. Sectoral indices like auto, bankex, capital goods and finance stocks kept the market low for another day. In scrips, Maruti Suzuki, a top loser, was down 3.04 per cent to Rs 8,549 followed by Tech Mahindra by 2.50 per cent to Rs 1,409.50, Powergrid by 1.70 per cent to Rs 211.10, ICICI Bank by 1.48 per cent to Rs 782.25 and Axis Bank by 1.14 per cent to Rs 764.30. The gainers were NTPC by 3.82 per cent to Rs 140.10, Sun Pharma by 2.17 per cent to Rs 829.85, IndusInd Bank by 1.65 per cent to Rs 903 and M& M by 1.45 per cent to Rs 870.25. The Mid Cap rose by 1.02 per cent and Small Cap by 1.07 per cent. In 30 scrips, 16 advanced while 14 declined. The Nikkei 225 in Japan gained around 2 per cent while the Topix was up 1.8 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi also rose 1.9 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index eased 0.8 per cent. Shanghai composite dropped 1 per cent and Shenzhen component fell 0.5 per cent.