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Indian equity benchmarks ended Friday's session under heavy selling pressure, capping their fifth consecutive day of losses. Investors reacted to surging crude oil prices, escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, weak corporate earnings, and continued foreign fund outflows. The bearish trend was visible across sectors, with banking, auto, and metal stocks leading the decline. The sell-off also pushed the benchmark indices towards their worst weekly performance in nearly four months.
At 2:50 PM, the Sensex was down 272.00 points, or 0.36%, at 76,119.39, while the Nifty fell 81.70 points, or 0.34%, to 23,787.90. Market breadth remained negative, with 1,792 shares advancing against 1,944 declines. Broader markets also remained under pressure, with the Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices declining as risk aversion intensified.
The weakness was largely driven by Brent crude climbing above $100 per barrel, raising concerns over inflation, India's import bill, and corporate profitability. Investors also remained cautious following disappointing quarterly earnings from several large-cap companies.
Friday’s decline was indicative of a risk-off scenario. The equity markets fell back as uncertainty rose following new events taking place in the Middle East. Increased oil prices were a major source of concern for Indian markets as they can potentially cause inflation, increase the trade deficit, and reduce the bottom line for businesses.
The Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to reduce their positions, while the weakening Indian rupee became an additional factor causing uncertainty. Poor performance by large corporations dampened investor confidence.
