Mumbai, April 29 (IANS) A benchmark index of Indian equities markets ended Tuesday’s trade 165 points down, as metal, bank and automobile stocks dipped.

This is the third straight session of fall in markets which retreated after touching record highs last week.

The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 22,654.28 points, closed trading at 22,466.19 points (provisional), down 165.42 points or 0.73 percent from the previous day’s close at 22,631.61 points.

The Sensex touched a high of 22,681.89 points and a low of 22,443.56 points in trade.

Heavy selling pressure was found in metal, bank and automobile, capital goods and aoil and gas scrips. However, healthy buying was observed in consumer durables.

The metal index of the BSE fell 279.17 points, followed by bank index which edged lower by 190.48 points while the automobile index was down 160.58 points.

Capital goods index was down 93.10 points, followed by oil and gas index which was lower by 36.58 points. However, consumer durables index was up 11.88 points.

The wider 50-scrip S&P Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) too ended in the red. It closed 46 points or 0.68 percent down at 6,715.25 points.

The major Sensex gainers were: Sun Pharma, up 0.65 percent at Rs.639.35; Coal India, up 0.34 percent at Rs.296.75; HDFC, up 0.20 percent at Rs.886.70; Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), up 0.10 percent at Rs.2,193.50; and Infosys, up 0.01 percent at Rs.3,178.60.

Major Sensex losers included: Tata Steel, down 4.79 percent at Rs.405.50; Hindustan Unilever, down 3.10 percent at Rs.563.15; Hindalco Inds, down 2.87 percent at Rs.137.20; Tata Power, down 2.65 percent at Rs.80.90; and Bajaj Auto, down 2.20 percent at Rs.1,941.75.

Among Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei closed lower at 0.98 percent but China’s Shanghai Composite Index was higher by 0.84 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up by 1.45 percent.

In Europe, London’s FTSE 100 was trading 0.67 percent up, Germany’s DAX Index was higher by 1.17 percent and the French CAC 40 Index had gained by 0.42 percent when markets closed here.