Indian equity benchmarks BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty concluded Friday's trading session in negative territory, reversing earlier gains. The decline was largely attributed to widespread selling pressure on key index heavyweights, despite the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) maintaining its repo rate at 5.25%.
Market Performance Overview
The 30-share BSE Sensex shed 116.67 points, or 0.16%, to settle at 74,243.34. During the day, the index had fallen as much as 474 points from its intra-day high. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty 50 slipped 49.85 points, or 0.21%, closing at 23,366.70, falling below the 23,400 mark.
Market sentiment remained subdued, with investors adopting a cautious stance amid ongoing uncertainties surrounding the US-Iran conflict, which overshadowed the RBI's decision to keep monetary policy unchanged.
Key Contributors to the Decline
Several prominent stocks significantly contributed to the Sensex's downward movement. Among them were HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, Bharti Airtel, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and Tata Steel.
Top Losers on Sensex
- Trent: Fell 2.37%
- Tata Consultancy Services (TCS): Declined 1.90%
- Tata Steel: Dropped 1.78%
- NTPC: Down 1.46%
- Bharti Airtel: Slipped 1.12%
- HCL Technologies: Decreased 1.07%
Sectoral Performance
Among the sectoral indices, the BSE Commodities index experienced a 0.95% drop, closing at 8,562.67. The BSE IT index also saw a decline of 0.83%, settling at 28,221.18, reflecting broader weakness in these sectors.
Gainers
Conversely, a few stocks managed to buck the trend and post gains. Hindustan Unilever, Adani Ports, and Axis Bank were among the top performers on the 30-pack index, rising by up to 2.10%.
Market analysts suggest that global geopolitical tensions continue to influence investor behavior, leading to profit-booking in an otherwise stable interest rate environment.