Indian shares snapped a three-day rise on Tuesday as investors booked profits in key oil stocks that led a recent rally.
The 30-share Mumbai index fell 0.15 percent to 5,194.63 points, having gained 2.6 percent in the previous three sessions to hit its best close in nearly three months on Monday.
Traders booked profits in Reliance, India's top petrochemicals maker and a refiner, which fell 1 percent and state-run oil explorer ONGC, which shed 2 percent. ONGC is India's most valuable company by market capitalisation and the two stocks together make up more than a fourth of Bombay's index.
"The undertone is firm, but the market may consolidate around the current levels," said Sandeep Jain, of online brokerage Sharekhan.com. "There was good demand for cement stocks, after Gujarat Ambuja's strong volume growth."
Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd, India's third-biggest cement maker, reported a 20 percent jump in July shipments from a year ago, and its shares rose 4.8 percent. Industry leader Grasim Industries Ltd climbed 3.5 percent and Associated Cement Companies Ltd, the second largest, rose 2.9 percent.
July is traditionally a sluggish month for cement demand, but a delay in the arrival of monsoon rains over parts of the country this year ensured a near-normal level of construction activity.
Federal bonds ended unchanged but off the day's lows after comments by the finance ministry calmed investors' fears that inflation could spiral higher in the coming weeks. The benchmark 10-year bond yield ended steady at 6.2291 percent.
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