Mumbai, February 27 The benchmark Sensex plunged by 961 points while the broader Nifty closed below 25,200 on Friday due to fresh outflows of foreign funds and subdued global trends amid rising geopolitical risks.
The 30-share BSE Sensex fell by 961.42 points or 1.17 per cent to close at 81,287.19. During the day, it dropped by 1,089.46 points or 1.32 per cent to 81,159.15.
The 50-share NSE Nifty tumbled by 317.90 points or 1.25 per cent to end at 25,178.65.
The lack of progress in US-Iran nuclear talks intensified concerns about further escalation of Middle East tensions, experts said.
From the Sensex pack, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finserv, InterGlobe Aviation, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Maruti were the major decliners.
HCL Tech, Trent, Infosys, and Eternal were the gainers.
According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 3,465.99 crore on Thursday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 5,031.57 crore.
"Indian markets continued to consolidate amid weak global cues and rising geopolitical risks, with investor sentiment turning increasingly cautious. The lack of progress in US–Iran nuclear talks has intensified concerns about further escalation of Middle East tensions, while persistent uncertainty related to artificial intelligence (AI) is also supporting safe-haven flows," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
Among sectoral indices, realty declined by 2.25 per cent, followed by telecommunication (1.83 per cent), auto (1.81 per cent), metal (1.57 per cent), commodities (1.56 per cent), FMCG (1.52 per cent), and financial services (1.50 per cent).
IT and BSE Focused IT were the only gainers.
The BSE smallcap select index declined by 0.84 per cent, and the midcap select index dipped by 0.71 per cent.
A total of 2,528 stocks declined, while 1,660 advanced and 181 remained unchanged on the BSE.
On the weekly front, the BSE benchmark tanked by 1,527.52 points or 1.84 per cent, and the Nifty declined by 392.6 points or 1.53 per cent.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi fell by 1 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225, Shanghai's SSE Composite index, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended in positive territory.
Markets in Europe were trading on a mixed note.
The US market ended mostly lower on Thursday.
"Weak global cues and rising geopolitical uncertainty following inconclusive US–Iran talks weighed on investor confidence, triggering broad-based profit-booking across auto, FMCG, and pharma stocks after recent advances. The absence of fresh domestic triggers further accelerated the downside momentum, especially during the final hour of trade," Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder, Livelong Wealth, said.
Brent Crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped by 1.26 per cent to USD 71.64 per barrel.
On Thursday, the Sensex dipped marginally by 27.46 points, or 0.03 per cent, to close at 82,248.61. The Nifty eked out a marginal gain of 14.05 points or 0.06 per cent to end at 25,496.55.
