The key benchmark indices were flat in choppy trade amid mixed cues from Asian peers. The benchmark Sensex was down 32 points at 14,613 levels and the Nifty slipped 12 points to 4,328 levels. While metals, oil & gas and pharma stocks gained in early trade, IT, banking and realty counters were under pressure. The metal index on the BSE gained 0.7 per cent and the oil & gas index rose 0.6 per cent. Oil & gas stocks like ONGC, IOC and Gail India rose over 3 per cent each after the government increased petrol and diesel prices yesterday by Rs 4 and Rs 2 per litre respectively. On the other hand, the BSE IT index slumped 0.9 per cent and the BSE realty index fell 0.5 per cent. Among the Sensex stocks, ONGC led gainers. The stock rose 2.6 per cent in early trade today. Hindalco, JP Associates and Sterlite were the other main gainers in the pack, up more than 1.3 per cent each. However, DLF, ACC and TCS were among the losers in the pack. In the US markets, investors kicked off the quarter with a moderate gain after getting some reassuring data on manufacturing and housing. The Dow rose 57.06, or 0.7 percent, to 8,504.06. It climbed as high as 8,580.47 in earlier trading, but then pared its gains as the day went on. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4.01, or 0.4 percent, to 923.33. The Nasdaq composite index rose 10.68, or 0.6 percent, to 1,845.72. Trading was however subdued in most Asian markets. While Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up nearly 1 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s Kospi were trading with modest losses.