Indian benchmark indices opened on a slightly weaker note on Friday amid mixed global cues. The BSE Sensex fell 287.10 points or 0.35% at 81,961.51, and the Nifty 50 was down 105.10 points or 0.41% at 25,391.45.
Sectorally, Nifty Auto, Bank, Financial Services, FMCG, Metal, Pharma, Realty, Oil & Gas opened in red. In contrast, Nifty IT was up by 1.56%. In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 index was down 0.41%, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 was down 0.47%.
Among the Sensex pack, Indigo, Maruti, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, and Asian Paints were the top laggards. Reliance Industries and Adani Ports were also down 1 per cent each.
Private sector banks -- including ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank -- turned out to be the key draggers as the Sensex slipped around 380 points at the day's low this morning. It is also important to mention that ahead of its block offer, Vishal Mega Mart Ltd.'s shares were also down by 7% in early trading.
On the other hand, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, and TCS emerged as gainers. In the previous session, the Nifty 50 ended 0.06% or 14.05 points higher at 25,496.55, and the Sensex ended 0.03% or 27.46 points down at 82,248.61.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,465.99 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), however, bought stocks worth Rs 5,031.57 crore.
Markets in the Asia-Pacific were also flat on Friday after the Wall Street took a tumble overnight due to the sharp drop in Nvidia shares. Escalating geopolitical tensions surrounding Iran is also keeping global markets muted.
While Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.6%, South Korea's Kospi dropped 1.1%. The drop in Nvidia's share price came despite the company reporting quarterly earnings that beat expectations.
According to analysts, equities markets are likely to stay flat amid a mixed global backdrop. However, stock-specific moves are expected to be guided by domestic demand trends and policy-led opportunities.
Meanwhile, the Indian rupee also fell 4 paise to 90.95 against the US dollar in early trade.
