Indian stock markets slipped to red on Thursday, a day after making major gains. The Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex closed 50.95 points below at 31,904.40, while the National Stock Exchange Nifty ended at 9,873.30, 26.30 points down.

Banking shares performed well in Thursdays trade on both bourses. Axis Bank, ONGC, Mahindra & Mahindra and HDFC Bank were the major gainers on both indices, while Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, VA Tech Wabag and Canara Bank were the top losers.

At 2.30 pm, stocks of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited slipped by more than 15% on both indices on Thursday after the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the plan to sell the government’s 51% stake in the company to the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation. ONGC’s shares, however, gained over 3% on both Sensex and Nifty.