Of the 30 stocks on the Sensex, only one was on the gainer's list, HDFC, up 1.2 percent at Rs.2,349.

Prominent among the 29 losers were: Hero Honda, down 2.94 percent at Rs.1,349.90; Reliance Infra, down 2.87 percent at Rs.1,103.10; Jaiprakash Associates, down 2.4 percent at Rs.207.25, and Reliance Industries, down 2.39 percent at Rs.1,899.95.

Other Asian markets were trading depressed as well, with the Nikkei, a key index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, ending 80.96 points down at 10,204 points, 0.79 percent lower than its previous close.

The Hang Seng, the primary index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, however, was ruling in the green at 20,322.89 points, up 16.62 points or 0.08 percent.