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Sensex, Nifty Open in Red; ICICI Bank, SBI Drag
20 Feb 2015, 09:48 AM IST 
The Sensex opened lower in trades on Friday owing to profit-booking after seven days of gains.
The 50-share Nifty also opened on a weak note on the back of selling pressure visible in heavyweight stocks like ICICI Bank, Coal India, HDFC and State Bank of India.
Meanwhile, the broader markets were outperforming the benchmark indices in the opening trades. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices were up 0.3 per cent each.
Overnight, the Nasdaq rose for a seventh straight session on Thursday as Priceline shares jumped, while the Dow and S&P 500 eased following declines in energy shares and a disappointing outlook from Wal-Mart.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 44.08 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 17,985.77, the S&P 500 lost 2.23 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 2,097.45 and the Nasdaq Composite added 18.34 points, or 0.37 per cent, to 4,924.70.
Meanwhile, the Japanese stocks rose to a fresh 15-year high on Friday with the dollar boosted by upbeat US data, but continuing uncertainty over the Greek debt negotiations weighed on the euro.
Japan's Nikkei climbed to a fresh 15-year high and was last up 0.3 per cent.
Back home, Banking stocks continued to witness selling pressure for the second consecutive day. The Bank Nifty was down 1.3 per cent in the opening trades. Consumer durables, IT, FMCG and oil & gas stocks were also facing the heat of selling pressure. At the same time, metal and realty stocks were witnessing some buying.
ICICI Bank was the top loser among the Nifty stocks. The stock slipped nearly 2 per cent to Rs 333. Coal India, HDFC, State Bank of India, Cairn India, ITC and Power Grid also opened on a weak note. On the other hand, Jindal Steel added on to yesterday's gains. The stock was up 3 per cent at Rs 201. Ultratech Cement, Bajaj Auto, Hindalco, BHEL and Tata Motors were also among the gainers.
At 9:45 AM, the Sensex slipped 255 points to 29,206 and the 50-share Nifty was down 70 points at 8,825.
(With inputs from Reuters)