From correspondents in Maharashtra, India, 12:04 PM IST

A key Indian equities index slipped about 150 points at the opening bell Friday but soon recovered partially.

The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened at 17,182.23 points but soon slipped to 17,053.59 points before recovering to 17,144 points, down 41.68 points, about 15 minutes into trade.

Around the same time, at the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader 50-share S and amp;P CNX Nifty was at 5,120.75 points, against the previous close at 5,131.7 points, a loss of 10.95 points.

Broader market indices were, however, holding up with the BSE midcap index up 0.21 percent and the BSE small cap index ruling 0.58 percent higher.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)