MW: Indian shares broadly decline, but oil firms rise
By V. Phani Kumar
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Indian shares declined early Thursday in line with the fall in regional markets and a sluggish close on Wall Street, with metals and automobile companies pacing the drop. Petroleum companies rose, however, after a government panel recommended reforms that could boost their profits by removing or reducing subsidies on petroleum products. The 30-stock Sensex fell 0.5% to 16,413.41 and the 50-share S&P/CNX Nifty lost 0.4% to 4,910.25. Shares of Maruti Suzuki Ltd. (MUDGF 31.15, +0.30, +0.96%) fell 1.3% and Sterlite Industries Ltd. (SLT 16.75, +0.28, +1.70%) lost 1.9%. But Oil & Natural Gas Corp. advanced 1.6%, Indian Oil Corp. gained 1.5% and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. climbed 1.4%.
