Sensex washes out initial gains, headed for 6th day of decline

Mumbai: The benchmark BSE Sensex washed out initial gains and was quoted lower by 82 points in late morning trade due to fresh selling in auto, banking, metal, power and realty sectors amidst mixed Asian cues. [caption id=“attachment_1999999” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption]Besides, foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth a net Rs 27.43 crore yesterday, as per provisional data. The Sensex resumed higher at 28,892.21 and firmed up further to a high of 28,922.85 on initial buying. However, it declined afterwards to 28,721.24 before quoting at 28,768.89 at 1100 hours, showing a loss of 82.08 points, or 0.28 percent, from its last close. The CNX 50-share Nifty also moved down by 24.20 points, or 0.28 percent, to 8,687.50 at 1100 hours. Major losers were Tata Motors (5.76 percent), BHEL (3.06 percent), Gail India (3.03 percent), M&M (2.44 percent), Tata Power (2.04 percent), Hero Motocorp (1.87 percent), Axis Bank (1.84 percent) and HDFC Bank (1.61 percent). Asian stock markets were trading mixed in early trade ahead of the closely-watched US jobs report while apprehension about Greece’s bailout programme also weighed on sentiment. Key indices in Japan, Singapore, and Indonesia were up by 0.58-0.8 percent while indices in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea were off by 0.13-1.14 percent. PTI