Mkts slip from lifetime high on profit booking

Mumbai: Equity benchmarks retreated from lifetime highs on Thursday as investors took money off the table ahead of an extended weekend, while the grounding of Jet Airways stoked fears among banks and other lenders.

After rallying to an intra-day record of 39,487.45 points, the 30-share BSE Sensex turned negative to settle 135.36 points, or 0.34 per cent, lower at 39,140.28.

The broader NSE Nifty slipped 34.35 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 11,752.80 after setting an intra-day record of 11,856.

The benchmark indices had closed at record highs on Tuesday on earnings optimism and forecast of a near-normal monsoon.

Markets will be closed Friday on account of 'Good Friday'. Global markets remained subdued ahead of the Easter weekend as participants booked profits.

Shares of Jet Airways continued to fall for the second day in a row, plummeting over 32 per cent on Thursday, a day after the ailing airline shuttered its operations temporarily.

Apart from energy and oil and gas, all BSE sectoral indices closed in the red, led by realty, power, metal, telecom, capital goods and banking, shedding up to 2.33 per cent. The broader markets fell in tandem with the benchmarks.

The BSE smallcap index lost 0.99 per cent, while the midcap gauge tripped 0.89 per cent.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equity worth a net Rs 1,038.58 crore on Tuesday, and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares to the tune of Rs 37.22 crore, provisional data showed.

Global crude oil benchmark Brent futures fell 0.17 per cent to $71.50 per barrel.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee appreciated 5 paise to 69.55 against the US dollar intra-day.

Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Japan, China and Korea ended in the red. In Europe, bourses in Germany, France and the UK were trading on a mixed note in early deals.