Share Market Closes Lower, Sensex Under 75,950, Nifty Ends Over 100 Points Down. See Why Indices Tanked

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Nestle, TCS, and HCL Tech emerged among the gainers in the session. On the other hand, the laggards in the day included Adani Ports, IndusInd Bank, and NTPC. 

The Indian stock markets reversed their trend and ended trading on Friday in red. The equity benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, closed down in their eighth consecutive trading session. The BSE Sensex settled for the day under 75,950, declining almost 200 points, while the NSE Nifty50 ended trading at 22,929,25, clocking a fall of a little over 100 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Nestle, ICICI Bank, Infosys, TCS, and HCL Tech emerged among the gainers in the session. On the other hand, the laggards in the day included Adani Ports, UltraTech Cement, Sun Pharma, IndusInd Bank, and NTPC. 

In the broader markets, multiple indices crashed over 3 per cent in the session. The Nifty Smallcap50 index plunged 3.81 per cent, followed by the Nifty Smallcap100 index which tanked 3.55 per cent.

Sectorally, the Media index dominated in red and nosedived over 3 per cent, settling down by 3.40 per cent. The Pharma and Healthcare Index followed with losses of 2.87 per cent and 2.46 per cent respectively.

Why Did Markets Fall?

This downfall was attributed to the wary sentiment prevalent among investors about the implications of reciprocal US tariffs. Notably, PM Modi met the US president and both countries committed to finalising the first phase of the trade deal by the end of the year and aimed to target bilateral trade at $500 million by 2030. 

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, explained, "The risk-averse sentiment continues to rule investors’ minds as corporate earnings are significantly lower than the market expectations during the start of the year, especially for mid and small caps. Muted earnings trend, INR depreciation along with external factors like tariffs are expected to keep the sentiments weak in the near term, which could further push FIIs outflows. Volatility is expected to stay elevated until there is clarity on tariffs and a recovery in corporate earnings."

Macro Indicators 

The Indian rupee recovered and closed the session 12 paise higher at 86.81 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday. Forex traders noted that elevated crude oil prices and consistent foreign fund outflows weighed down the domestic currency. 

The foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded Indian equities worth Rs 2,789.91 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. The global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.55 per cent to touch $75.43 a barrel.