Mumbai, Nov 21 (IANS) Dragged down by auto and manufacturing sector stocks, the equity indices ended lower on Thursday. The Sensex ended 76.47 points or 0.19 per cent down at 40,575.17, while the Nifty lost 30.70 points to finish at 11,968.40.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) on Thursday ended 5.7 per cent lower at Rs 513.50 a share on the NSE after the government announced plans for its divestment. Disinvestment Secretary T.K. Pandey told the media that the disinvestment of BPCL may be carried out in two phases.

Telecom stocks witnessed profit-booking after the Cabinet's nod for a two-year moratorium on spectrum-related dues. Bharti Airtel ended 2.39 per cent lower at
Rs 426.85 apiece and Vodafone Idea fell 5.67 per cent to Rs 6.65 a share on the NSE.

Zee Entertainment advanced nearly 12 per cent to Rs 343 apiece after Subhash Chandra-led Essel group on Wednesday said that it is planning to sell 16.5 per cent stake in Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) to financial investors in order to repay loan obligations to certain lenders of the group.

--IANS ravi/vd