Indian equities faced a rude jolt on Friday as benchmark indices closed sharply lower following heavy selling across sectors. The Sensex lost 769.67 points (0.94%) to end at 81,537.70, and Nifty declined 241.25 points (0.95%) at 25,048.65, painting a grim picture for investors.
The pressure was most evident in realty and public sector banking spaces. Nifty Realty nosedived 3.34%, with PSU Bank index down 2.27%, Energy 1.92%, Defence 1.80%, Infrastructure 1.69%, PSE 1.54%, and Commodities 1.38%. This sectoral rout ensured almost all prominent indices ended in the red.
Sensex gainers included Tech Mahindra, HUL, Infosys, Asian Paints, TCS, Titan, and UltraTech Cement, providing some respite. Losers dominated, however, with IndiGo, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid, BEL, SBI, Maruti Suzuki, NTPC, Bajaj Finance, Trent, L&T, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bharti Airtel, and M&M among the biggest drags.
Midcap and smallcap segments mirrored the largecap weakness. Nifty Midcap 100 slid 1.80% or 1,045.65 points to 57,145.65, while Nifty Smallcap 100 fell 1.95% or 324.50 points to 16,352.75.
Analysts pointed to a weakening rupee at record lows versus the USD and continuous FII selling as primary culprits, overriding upbeat global markets and robust PMI figures. Negative sentiment persists among investors.
Future trajectories hinge on Fed rate cuts and the Union Budget. Markets opened higher, buoyed by international positivity—Sensex at 82,335 (up 28 points) and Nifty at 25,344 (up 55)—but couldn’t sustain the early gains.