Benchmark indices closed sharply lower on Friday as widespread selling pressure dominated the session. Indices traded with a negative bias throughout the day, with the lack of fresh domestic catalysts keeping sentiment subdued.

The Nifty settled below the 25,500 mark, reflecting sustained weakness across sectors. All NSE sectoral indices ended in the red. IT stocks extended losses amid ongoing concerns over AI-led disruption, while private banks, metals and energy shares also witnessed significant selling pressure.

The S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 1,048.16 points or 1.25% to 82,626.76. The Nifty 50 index tanked 336.10 points or 1.30% to 25,471.10.

Reliance Industries (down 2.09%), HDFC Bank (down 1.81%) and ICICI Bank (down 1.01%) were major Nifty drags today.

 

Broader markets also witnessed heavy selling, with the BSE 150 MidCap Index dropped 1.58% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index slipped 1.50%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,253 shares rose and 2,960 shares fell. A total of 155 shares were unchanged.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark federal paper shed 0.10% to 6.679 compared with previous session close of 6.686.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.6500 compared with its close of 90.6100 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 2 April 2026 settlement rose 0.74% to Rs 153,970.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback’s value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.15% to 97.07.

The United States 10-year bond yield rose 0.39% to 4.120.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for April 2026 settlement rose 29 cents or 0.43% to $67.81 a barrel.

Global Markets:

The US Dow Jones index futures are currently down by 189 points, signaling a weak opening for US stocks today.

Most European shares declined on Friday as investors digested more quarterly earnings as well as an overnight slide in U.S. technology shares.

Data released earlier Friday showed that German wholesale prices rose by 1.2% in January compared with the same month last year.

Asian indices ended lower, tracking Wall Street declines, as fears over artificial intelligence disruption drove the S&P 500 to a third straight day of losses. All eyes are on U.S. inflation data due later in the day.

Certain pockets of the U.S. stock market have been hit this year by the release of AI tools that threaten to automate tasks performed by some companiesor at least risk eating into their profit margins.

Overnight on Wall Street, US stocks fell sharply Thursday as the market punished companies seen as potential losers from artificial-intelligence technology.

The S&P 500 fell 108.71 points to 6,832.76. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 669.42 to 49,451.98, and the Nasdaq Composite sank 469.32 to 22,597.15.

Stocks in Spotlight:

The Nifty Metal index declined 3.31% to 11,872.80, after having gained 3% over the previous five trading sessions. Among constituents, Hindalco Industries dropped 6.08%, National Aluminium Company fell 5.42%, Hindustan Copper declined 5.16% and Hindustan Zinc slipped 4.91%. Vedanta lost 4.11%, Jindal Stainless fell 4.10% and Adani Enterprises declined 3.83%. Welspun Corp dropped 3.63%, NMDC fell 3.42% and Lloyds Metals and Energy declined 2.66%. Tata Steel slipped 2.47%, Jindal Steel and Power fell 1.65% and JSW Steel declined 1.51%, while APL Apollo Tubes and Steel Authority of India fell 1.02% and 0.84%, respectively.

Engineers India rallied 11.64% after the company reported a sharp jump in revenue and profitability for the quarter ended 31 December 2025. On a consolidated basis, net sales rose 58.29% YoY to Rs 1,210.24 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with Rs 764.59 crore in Q3 FY25. Sequentially, revenue increased 31.36% from Rs 921.29 crore in Q2 FY26. Net profit surged 219.30% YoY to Rs 347.17 crore, up from Rs 108.73 crore in the year-ago quarter. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, PAT jumped 315.82% from Rs 83.49 crore.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) declined 3.17%. The company reported 1.60% increase in standalone net profit to Rs 8,371.85 crore in Q3 FY2, compared with Rs 8,239.92 crore in Q3 FY25. However, revenue from operations declined 6.43% YoY to Rs 31,546.51 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2025.

Hindalco Industries tumbled 5.77% after the company reported 45% drop in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,049 crore despite a 14% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 66,521 crore in Q3 FY26 as compared with Q3 FY25.

Info Edge (India) fell 0.30%. The company reported a 23.11% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 246.45 crore on 13.85% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 764.55 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

Honasa Consumer gained 0.82% after reporting a strong operational and financial performance for the quarter ended 31 December 2025. On a reported basis, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 602 crore in Q3 FY26, up 16.2% YoY from Rs 518 crore in Q3 FY25. Profit after tax stood at Rs 50 crore in Q3 FY26, up 92.9% YoY from Rs 26 crore in Q3 FY25.

Indian Hotels Company declined 1.59%. The company consolidated net profit jumped 55.10% to Rs 903.23 crore on 12.91% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 2,841.96 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

NIBE tumbled 6.01% after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 18.87 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with a net profit of Rs 1.94 crore posted in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations fell 60.3% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 59.08 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2025.

Lupin shed 0.50%. The company reported 37.46% surge in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,175.55 crore in Q3 FY26 as against Rs 855.16 crore posted in Q3 FY25. Total revenue from operations jumped 24.26% year-on-year to Rs 7,167.52 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2025.

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