Nifty Ends Flat aimed Budget

     Sensex open with a positive gap at 16,264with support from  Positive global cues after the Bernanke statement. The index moved up to a high of 16,329 in morning deals after the Economic Survey said growth is on track and will pick up momentum in the coming quarters. Profit-taking ahead of Budget tomorrow saw the index drop to a low of 16,167 - an intra-day swing of over 160 points. The Sensex finally closed on a flat note with a loss of two points at 16,254. The Nifty was flat at 4,860.

The BSE Capital Goods index gained over 1%. Breadth was bearish - out of nearly 2,900 scrips traded, over 1,520 declined.

L&T, which announced plans to raise nearly Rs 10,000 crore, gained over 2% at Rs 1,537. Maruti was up over 2% at Rs 1,401. Hero Honda, Infosys, ACC, ONGC and BHEL also closed with gains.

HUL dropped nearly 3% to Rs 235. Reliance was down 1% at Rs 964. Tata Motors, NTPC, Rcom and ITC also declined.

DB Realty was the most active counter on the BSE with a turnover of Rs 150 crore followed by Hathway Cable (Rs 136 crore) and Mphasis (Rs 70 crore).