Sensex down 263 points in early trade

The BSE benchmark index Sensex today fell by nearly 263 points in early trade on profit-booking by funds at prevailing higher levels amid a mixed trend in the Asian region.

The 30-share barometer fell by 262.61 points, or 1.35 per cent, to 19,233.21 in the first few minutes of trading. Sensex had gained over 318 points in the previous two session.
Similarly, the wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty declined by 80.90 points, or 1.38  per cent, to 5,787.

Brokers said  profit-booking by funds at prevailing higher levels amid a mixed trend in Asian region mainly influenced the trading sentiment here.

In the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell by 1.98 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei Index was up by 1.27 per cent in early trade.