Markets end below 17,000

The stock markets continued their downtrend for the third consecutive day on the back of weak global cues and a rise in inflation. The Nifty closed below the 5,000 mark for the first time in seven days and the Sensex ended below the 17,000 mark.

The Dow Jones declined 92.12 points (0.92 per cent) to 9,949.36, the Nasdaq shed 12.74 points (0.59 per cent) to close at 2,150.73 and the Asian markets opened on a flat note.

The Sensex opened marginally higher at 17,031.54, which also happened to be the day's high, and the Nifty started flat at 5063.35. Thereafter, it was a repeat of yesterday and the key indices slipped into the red within minutes and traded in a narrow range till afternoon, though not as choppy as yesterday.

Volatility returned in the afternoon after the European markets opened in the negative and the US futures fell. The inflation numbers were also disappointing. Inflation rose to 1.21 per cent for the week ended October 10 due to an increase in prices of major food items.

The Sensex touched an intra-day low of 16,721.26 and the Nifty touched 4968.45 at one point. The Sensex recovered marginally to close at 16,789.74, down 219.43 points, and the Nifty ended the day at 4988.60, lower by 75 points.

Real estate was the major loses on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and shed more than 4 per cent. Capital goods, consumer durables and banking indices fell 2-3 per cent.

Reliance fell to Rs 2,134, down 2.2 per cent. Larsen & Toubro fell 4 per cent to Rs 1,609 following a disappointing performance in the second quarter. Jaiprakash Associates shed 7 per cent to Rs 238 after announcing its quarterly results. DLF, Tata Motors, Reliance Infrastructure, Grasim, SBI, Hindalco, Tata Steel and NTPC dropped 1-5 per cent each.

Telecom, IT and FMCG stocks had a relatively decent day. Infosys gained 2 per cent to Rs 2,212 while ITC and Hindustan Unilever rose 1.5 per cent each to Rs 248 and Rs 278, respectively. Bharti Airtel and Mahindra & Mahindra rose around 1 per cent.

The market breadth was fairly negative. Out of 2,825 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,875 declined and 871 advanced.