Sensex slips 113 points in early trade, profit-booking weighs

The benchmark BSE Sensex fell by over 113 points and the NSE Nifty cracked below the 7,200-mark in early trade today due to profit-booking by investors after recent gains amid a lacklustre trade in Asia.

The 30-share barometer fell 113.08 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 23,675.71, with sectoral indices FMCG, banking,power, PSU, oil and gas, capital goods and consumer durables-- taking the maximum battering.

The index had gained 596.82 points in the last four sessions.Also, the NSE Nifty dropped below the crucial 7,200-mark by falling 37.45 points, or 0.51 per cent, at 7,197.10.

Brokers said that apart from profit-booking in recent gainers, a weak Asian trend after the crude oil rally fizzled out influenced sentiment.

In the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was trading lower by 0.62 per cent and Shanghai Composite was down 1.26 per cent in early trade. Japan's Nikkei shed 0.48 per cent.The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 1.40 per cent higher in yesterday's trade after US oil prices rose more than 6 per cent.