Sensex down 51 points; Nifty above 8,700

Mumbai: After yesterday's strong momentum, powered by the Budget proposals, the benchmark BSE Sensex fell about 51 points in initial trading today due to a rush to take profit amid weak Asia cues.

The NSE Nifty broke below the key 8,700-mark.

The 30-share BSE index dropped 50.61 points, or 0.18 per cent, to 28,091.03, with metal, auto, capital goods, IT and realty stocks feeling the squeeze.

The gauge had rallied 486 points yesterday, spurred by a series of market-friendly budget moves.

The NSE Nifty went below the 8,700-mark by falling 21.20 points, or 0.24 per cent, to trade at 8,695.20.

A weak trend in Asia came as a dampener, traders said.

With the Budget out of the way, the focus turns to RBI's monetary policy to be released next week, they added.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 0.52 per cent while Japan's Nikkei shed 0.25 per cent in early trade today. Chinese market is closed for a public holiday.

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, ended 0.14 per cent higher yesterday.