The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex lost 146 points in early trading on continued selling by funds, triggered by weak Asian cues.

The 30-share index fell by 146.05 points to 17,276.46 points in the first five minutes of trade. The BSE barometer had lost 278.62 points in the last four sessions. The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty lost 50.85 points at 5,169.55 points at the same time.