Indian equity markets closed lower on Friday, weighed down by declines in Real Estate, Auto and Metals names that pulled major indices into negative territory.
At the National Stock Exchange close, the Nifty 50 was down 1.25%. On the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Sensex 30 finished the session 1.17% lower.
Top movers on the Nifty 50
- Trent Ltd (NSE:TREN) was the strongest performer on the Nifty, rising 1.35% or 52.00 points to finish at 3,908.00.
- Infosys Ltd (NSE:INFY) added 0.77% or 9.90 points to close at 1,299.00.
- HCL Technologies Ltd (NSE:HCLT) increased 0.62% or 8.50 points to end the day at 1,382.00.
Lagging names on the Nifty 50
- Adani Enterprises Ltd (NSE:ADEL) fell 2.68% or 59.50 points to close at 2,156.90.
- Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (NSE:MRTI) declined 2.65% or 403.00 points to settle at 14,810.00.
- Bharti Airtel Ltd. (NSE:BRTI) slid 2.47% or 47.60 points to finish at 1,882.00.
BSE Sensex movers
- HCL Technologies Ltd (BO:HCLT) rose 0.84% to 1,384.95 on the Sensex list.
- Infosys Ltd (BO:INFY) gained 0.83% to settle at 1,300.00.
- Eternal Ltd (BO:ETEA) advanced 0.65% to close at 248.00.
On the downside for the Sensex, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. (BO:MRTI) was down 2.53% to 14,828.00, Bharti Airtel Ltd (BO:BRTI) lost 2.44% to end at 1,881.50, and Bajaj Finserv Ltd (BO:BJFS) declined 2.39% to 1,992.50.
Market breadth and volatility
Decliners outnumbered advancers across both main exchanges. On the National Stock Exchange, 1,624 issues fell while 870 advanced and 43 were unchanged. On the Bombay Stock Exchange, 2,343 shares fell versus 1,594 that rose and 174 that were unchanged.
The India VIX, the gauge of implied volatility for Nifty 50 options, moved up 4.75% to 13.68, indicating a pick-up in option-implied volatility as indices pared back gains.
Commodities and currencies
Precious metals and energy contracts recorded mixed moves. Gold Futures for April delivery slipped 0.09% or 4.56 to $5,189.64 a troy ounce. Crude oil contracts strengthened - April crude rose 1.67% or 1.09 to $66.30 a barrel, while the May Brent contract climbed 1.50% or 1.06 to $71.90 a barrel.
In currency markets, USD/INR edged up 0.05% to 91.02 and EUR/INR was higher by 0.06% at 107.42. The US Dollar Index Futures eased 0.06% to 97.68.
As trading concluded, the session left most major indices lower with defensive advances limited to a handful of technology and retail names. The combination of sector pressure, negative breadth and a rise in implied volatility set the tone for the close.