Mumbai, Aug 21 - A key index of the Indian equities markets slipped back into the red, after having crawled back into the green a little before noon Friday.

At 12.37 p.m., the 30-scrip benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, which had opened weak at 14,951.49 points, was at 14,983.9 points -- 28.42 points or 0.19 percent below Thursday's close.

It had crept into the green around 11.30 a.m. for a short while.

At around the same time, the S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), too, was trading in the negative terrain at 4,452.95 points, down 0.01 percent.

However, broader market indices were doing well, with the BSE midcap index trading 0.51 percent higher and the BSE smallcap index moving up 1.01 percent.

Of the 13 sectoral indices on the BSE, those for FMCG, healthcare and metal scrips were losing the most, while realty and IT stocks found favour among buyers.

The market breadth was positive, with 1,379 stocks on the rise, compared to 1,021 on the decline, while 101 remained unchanged.