Sensex down 35 points on profit-booking

The benchmark Sensex fell almost 35 points in early trade today as investors took profits from recent gainers amid mixed Asian cues.Investors turned cautious ahead of the upcoming Budget on Wednesday.

The 30-share barometer declined 34.71 points, or 0.12 per cent, to 27,847.75, with sectoral indices led by IT, metal, teck and auto trading in negative terrain.The index had risen 847.96 points in the previous four sessions.

The NSE Nifty too was quoting lower by 14.15 points, or 0.16 per cent, at 8,627.10.

justify;">Equity brokers said that apart from profit-booking, a mixed trend in Asia following weekend losses in New York on lacklustre fourth-quarter growth report and some high-profile earnings disappointments led to the subdued opening of the domestic markets here.

In the Asian region, Japan's Nikkei was quoting 0.74 per cent down, while Shanghai Composite rose 0.31 per cent in early deals. Hong Kong's financial markets are closed today for public holiday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.04 per cent lower in Friday's trade.