The NSE Nifty rose 112.35 points or 0.5% to close at 23,114.5, while the BSE’s Sensex rose 325.72 points or 0.4%, to settle at 74,532.96. Both indices had risen as much as 1.5% in early trade, but gains fizzled out after the rupee slipped past 93 against the dollar for the first time, dampening sentiment.
On Friday, foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth ₹5,518 crore. Domestic institutions were buyers to the tune of ₹5,706 crore.
“The heightened volatility on Friday and throughout the week is because of persistent geopolitical tensions and a steady stream of negative news flow,” said Rajesh Palviya, head of technical and derivatives research at Axis Securities. “Crude prices continue to edge higher with no clear signs of a war ceasefire, while on the domestic front, weakness in banking and financial services stocks, coupled with the rupee at record lows, is keeping markets under pressure in the near term.”
He added that a breach of the key Nifty support level of 23,000 could drag the index down to 22,800.
Live Events
Brent crude May futures were down 0.4% at $108 a barrel on Friday evening, after soaring to a high of $119 the previous day.
Elsewhere in Asia, China declined by 1.2%, Hong Kong fell by 0.9%, Taiwan dropped by 0.4%, while South Korea gained 0.3%. The pan-Europe index Stoxx 600 was up 0.2% at the time of going to print.At home, the Volatility Index or VIX-the market’s fear gauge-closed at 22.81, almost unchanged from the previous day. The measure soared 59% in the past month amid the West Asia conflict.
“We see limited downside risk in Indian markets at current levels,” said Bino Pathiparampil, head of equity research at Elara Capital. “We will closely monitor developments in the West Asia conflict, particularly the situation around the Strait of Hormuz, which remains critical because any more attacks on the oil and gas infrastructure would be negative.”