MUMBAI: Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty pared opening gains to trade lower in the early session on Friday amid sustained selling by foreign institutional investors.
The 30-share BSE Sensex opened higher at 82,335.94 and later hit a high of 82,516.27.
However, profit-taking by investors dragged the barometer into the red.
The index was down 22.13 points or 0.03 per cent at 82,285.24 at 1000 hrs.
The broader NSE Nifty was marginally down by 2.95 or 0.01 per cent at 25,286.95.
The index moved between 25,347.95 and a low of 25,249.10 in the early session.
Among the 30 Sensex firms, Eternal, IndiGo, Adani Ports, Power Grid, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Larsen & Toubro, Titan, State Bank of India, and Reliance Industries were the laggards.
Asian Paints, Tata Consultancy Services, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Bajaj Finance, NTPC and Mahindra & Mahindra were the gainers.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi index, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index were trading higher.
US equities closed higher in overnight deals on Thursday.
Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 2,549.
80 crore on Thursday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 4,222.98 crore, according to exchange data.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.80 per cent to USD 64.57 per barrel.
On Thursday, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 397.74 points to close at 82,307.37, while the broader NSE Nifty rose 132.40 points to settle at 25,289.90.