Markets ends flat: IT stks plunge; realty, cap goods up

22 April 2008

The markets ended flat with positive bias amid a mildly choppy session moving in a tight range. Selective buying was seen in broader markets, which gave markets positive breadth. Among the sectoral indices IT stocks were beaten down and the IT index was down over 4%. Buying interest was seen in realty, power, capital goods, pharma, banking and metal stocks. Most of the Asian markets ended lower.

Sensex closed up 44.54 points or 0.27% at 16783.87, and the Nifty up 12.30 points or 0.24% at 5049.30.

About 1652 shares have advanced, 1201 shares declined, and 225 shares are unchanged.

The BSE Midcap Index ended at 7,037.62 up 0.8%.

The BSE Smallcap Index ended at 8,798.08 up 0.5%.

The BSE Bankex ended at 8,716.83 up 1.5%. Bank of India, Andhra Bank, Kotak Mahindra, Oriental Bank, Allahabad Bank moved upwards.