Mumbai Aug 30 (IANS) Profit booking along with a slump in the rupee and weak global cues pulled the key Indian equity indices lower on Thursday.
Investors booked profits as the August series of futures and options contracts ended on Thursday analysts said adding that rise in global crude oil prices also eroded the investor sentiments.
Index-wise the Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) closed at 11 676.80 points lower 15.10 points or 0.13 per cent from its previous close of 11 691.90 points.
The barometer 30-scrip S&P BSE Sensex which had opened at 38 796.98 points closed at 38 690.10 points lower 32.83 points or 0.08 per cent from the previous close of 38 722.93 points.
It touched an intra-day high of 38 819.06 points and low of 38 581.83 points.
However in the broader markets the S&P BSE Mid-cap gained by 0.43 per cent while the S&P BSE Small-cap ended 0.27 per cent higher than its previous close. The BSE market breadth was bullish with 1 459 advances and 1 256 declines.
"Stocks markets traded under pressure through the day only to stage a smart recovery towards the end of the trading session and close near the flat line. Along with the US-Sino trade concerns another bout of weakness in the Indian currency dampened investor sentiment " said Abhijeet Dey Senior Fund Manager for Equities BNP Paribas Mutual Fund.
Further global markets traded lower and investors continued to monitor global trade talks which lent uncertainty to the immediate direction of the markets he added.
On the currency front the rupee settled at a record closing low of 70.74 per dollar 15 paise weaker than its previous close of 70.59 per greenback.
Investment-wise data from NSDL on Thursday showed that foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold scrip worth Rs 1 379.34 crore.
Sector-wise the S&P BSE FMCG index rose 139.71 points the healthcare index was up 132.15 points and the metal index rose by 108.21 points.
In contrast the S&P BSE banking index index declined 122.88 points the auto index fell by 82.77 points and consumer durables stocks ended 55.45 points lower than its previous close.
The top gainers at the Sensex were Sun Pharma up 3.03 per cent at Rs 639.50; Tata Steel up 2.40 per cent at Rs 608.30; ITC up 2.08 per cent at Rs 319.20; Bharti Airtel up 2.07 per cent at Rs 382.60; and NTPC up 1.93 per cent at Rs 169.20 per share.
The majors losers were IndusInd Bank down 1.62 per cent at Rs 1 876.20; Maruti Suzuki down 1.62 per cent at Rs 9 212.40; Reliance Industries down 1.57 per cent at Rs 1 274.10; Tata Motors (DVR) down 1.28 per cent at Rs 138.55 per share; and Asian Paints down 1.15 per cent at Rs 1 375.95 per share.

--IANS ravi-rrb/tsb/vm