Sensex ends down by 12 pts at 8,903 pts

Mumbai, Nov 24 (UNI) After a sharp rally on Friday last, the Sensex today ended marginally down by 12.09 points at 8,903.12 points on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), compared with its last finish of 8,915.21, amid choppy trade.

However, the Nifty index of National Stock Exchange (NSE) rose modestly by 14.80 and ended positive at 2,708.25 points.

It was a lacklustre session for the markets, as it remained choppy throughout the day. The benchmark indices closed flat. The Nifty tried number of times to bounce back above 2,700 mark and in the final trade, it managed to close above the same level. Global cues were mixed, as Asian markets ended weak, while European indices were trading sharply higher. US markets futures were also trading in green, a leading broker said.

The Asian markets were trading lower today. Key benchmark indices in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan were down by between 0.25 per cent and 3.67 pc. Japanese markets were closed for a public holiday. Citigroup received USD 20 billion cash and USD 306 billion loan guarantees from the US Government. StanChart plans to raise USD 2.7 billion via rights issue, whose price was fixed at 390 pence per share, 48.7 pc discount to last closing price.

The Sensex resumed low at 8,840.53 points before recording an intra-day high of 9,042.02 and low of 8,701.93. However, the 50-share Nifty index opened flat at 2,690.85. Later it registered the day's high at 2,740.35 and a low at 2,633.80 points. The BSE Mid Cap Index was down 14.37 points, or 0.49 per cent, at 2,902.29 and the Small Cap Index fell by 26.80 points, or 0.79 pc, to 3,363.96. Market breadth was weak, about 1,141 shares advanced while 1,486 shares declined. Nearly 569 shares were unchanged. The total turnover on the BSE amounted to Rs 3,199 crore as compared to Rs 2,275 crore, while total traded turnoved stood at 57,920.55 crore. This includes Rs 8,500 crore from NSE Cash segment, Rs 46,218.94 crore NSE F &O and the balance Rs 3,201.61 crore from BSE Cash segment.

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