Mumbai, March 12: The sensex today failed to hold on to its early gains because of the disappointing industrial growth numbers.

The bellwether index had gone up 560 points at one point of time — taking heart from the US Federal Reserve’s booster shot yesterday — but ended just 4.83 points higher than yesterday at 16127.98. The Fed had announced a $200-billion bailout package for the credit markets.

Both the metal and the IT indices dipped, about 2.4 per cent and 2.2 per cent, respectively, once the tardy industry figures came to light. The 50-share Nifty, too, tripped. It plunged from its intra-day high of 5019.20 to settle with just a six-point gain at 4872.

Analysts said the market was just recovering from a dull budget, in which there was little for the bourses, when the industry results arrived. Among the major losers were Tata Steel and Hindalco. While the former fell 6.5 per cent, Hindalco lost 5.5 per cent.