New Delhi, Aug 9 (IANS) Indian equities markets, which stemmed losses Tuesday, were a sign of the economy's strong fundamentals, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Tuesday.

"I would like to emphasis that some of the investment banks have upgraded India to market weight, that means the basic fundamentals are strong and macroeconomic recovery is moving in a positive direction," Mukherjee said referring to a report released Monday by investment banking firm Goldman Sachs.

The 30-scrip benchmark of the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, which fell over 550 points in early trade Tuesday, almost recovered its losses in the afternoon before closing with a 132.27 points or 0.78 percent loss at 16,857.91 points.

The minister said the Indian markets managing to pare its early losses signified the resilience of the Indian economy.

In comparison, Asian markets closed deep in the red.

The benchmark Japanese Nikkei closed 1.68 percent down at 8,944.48 points, while the Chinese Shanghai Composite index too closed flat at 2,526.07 points.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell a huge 5.66 percent lower at 19,330.7 points.