Mumbai, Dec 18 (IANS): Domestic equities traded lackluster on Monday as profit booking was seen after a sharp rally over the last three sessions, said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

The benchmark indices ended in the red on Monday. At close, Nifty was down 38.00 points or 0.18 per cent at 21,418.70, while Sensex was down 168.66 points or 0.24 per cent at 71,315.09.

The broader market, however, ended in green with Midcap100 and Smallcap100 up 0.2 per cent and 0.6 per cent, respectively, Khemka said.

Global markets were also trading cautiously ahead of Bank of Japan's meeting on Tuesday, where the central bank may announce the plan to end its ultra-loose monetary policy.

Sector-wise, it was a mixed bag with pharma, auto, metals, and infra being marginal gainers. Banking and IT stocks took a breather as the sentiment was dampened after several Fed officials hinting that the US Federal Reserve might not cut rates next year, he added.

Niche sectors like sugar, shipping and defence stocks were in focus on Monday. Sugar stocks bounced back after the government allowed sugar mills to use both sugarcane juice and B-heavy molasses to produce ethanol, while strong domestic orders lifted defence stocks.

Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities, said Nifty formed a doji after a sideways move and formed an inside day. Nifty could now stay in the 21,287-21,492 band for the near term. High level of the broader indices is weighing on the minds of participants, but dips are getting bought into.