Sensex slips...Nifty ends below 5400

Just when we thought risk appetite was back in vogue, the Nifty and Sensex cooled off after enjoying a brief stay above 5400 and 18000 levels. The Nifty did manage to pierce the 5450 levels intra-day; however, the euphoria was short lived as market players preferred to book profit at higher levels.



IT heavyweights like Infosys, TCS and Wipro slipped and even Metals and Telecom stocks were among the major laggards.

Indian stocks gave away early gains despite June inflation rising at a lower than expected pace and a worldwide rally in reaction to stellar results from Alcoa and Intel, says Amar Ambani, Vice President, Research IIFL.

Finally, the Sensex ended at 17,938, losing 48 points while the Nifty shed 15 points to shut shop at 5,386.

The fact that the key stock benchmarks are trading near 30-month highs and some nervousness ahead of a string of earnings might have prompted investors to turn a little cautious.