Key benchmarks Sensex and Nifty ended marginally lower on Tuesday following losses in index majors HDFC (Housing), HDFC Bank,  Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank amid a weak trend in Asian markets.

At close, The BSE barometer Sensex slipped 53 points to 52,275.57. Conversely, the broader NSE Nifty declined 11.55 points to 15,740.10. SBI was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding over 1%, followed by HDFC duo, Kotak Bank, PowerGrid and ICICI Bank. On the downside,  Tech Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, Infosys and HCL Tech were among the gainers.

Bank Nifty underperformed the Nifty index by about 1 percent with both the indices closing in the red. Banking stocks like SBI, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank & Kotak Bank witnessed an unwinding of long positions as profit booking weighed in. Midcap and smallcap indices continued to outperform the benchmarks as improved prospects of earnings recovery continues to attract investors towards this space, he added. 

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.53 percent lower at USD71.11 per barrel.

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