Extending the losses for the second successive day, the BSE benchmark Sensex closed 50 points lower on Tuesday, with fag-end profit-booking in banking and auto stocks erasing early gains.
     
The 30-share index closed down by 50.28 points, or 0.28 per cent, at 17,878.14. Analysts said weak cues in European bourses and lower opening of US futures prompted investors to book profits overlooking the positive domestic trends.
     
The wide-based National Stock Exchange's 50-share Nifty index, too, lost 0.34 per cent to settle at 5,368 points.
     
Markets surged in early trade on positive export data and the Asian Development Bank's upward revision of growth estimates for the region to 7.9 per cent. The Sensex even touched the 30-month high of 18,040.17 points intra-day.
     
Buoyed by rising exports and the impact of stimulus packages on Asian economies, the ADB on Tuesday raised the growth forecast for the region to 7.9 per cent, but retained the projection for India at 8.2 per cent for 2010.
     
Exports in June rose over 30 per cent, reflecting increased economic activities.
     
Analyst speak
     
"Investors are trading very cautiously and the market is not able to break the range-bound trend. The market is waiting for bigger triggers to go forward," Networth Stock Broking's Head of Institutional Sales & Strategy Prakash Diwan said.
     
ICICI Bank lost 1.22 per cent, HDFC 1.24 per cent and SBI 0.31 per cent. HDFC Bank declined 0.29 per cent, a day after it posted a 34 per cent rise in its June quarter profit to Rs 811 crore.
     
Another casualty was auto stocks, with Tata Motors sinking 1.57 per cent, M&M 0.88 per cent, Maruti 0.15 per cent and Hero Honda 0.21 per cent.
     
In the Sensex pack, 20 stocks ended with losses, while 10 managed to close with gains.