Closing bell: Markets end higher but lose steam amid profit booking; Nifty slips 243 pts from day’s high, Sensex off 662 pts

Indian equity benchmarks ended marginally higher on Friday, but gave up most of their intraday gains as profit booking at elevated levels triggered a sharp reversal in the latter half of the session.

After starting on a flat note, the Sensex and Nifty 50 gathered steam early in the day, driven by a rally in banking, oil & gas, and IT stocks. However, selling pressure intensified near the session’s peak, dragging indices sharply lower from their highs.

The Nifty 50 retreated 243 points from the day’s high to close at 24,346, up just 12.50 points or 0.05%. The Sensex erased 662 points from its intraday high but still managed to finish 259.75 points or 0.32% higher at 80,501.99.

Despite the muted close, both indices extended their weekly winning streak to a third consecutive week, with the Nifty gaining 1.28% and the Sensex advancing 1.64%.

This upbeat momentum was underpinned by renewed foreign institutional investor (FII) interest, as overseas funds remained net buyers for 11 straight sessions through April-end, infusing ₹37,400 crore into Indian equities.

Investor sentiment also drew support from easing global trade tensions. Talks of a possible tariff agreement between India and the U.S., alongside signs of thaw in U.S.-China trade relations, buoyed market optimism earlier in the week. U.S. President Donald Trump’s positive remarks on bilateral talks and China’s willingness to re-engage in trade negotiations offered a supportive global backdrop.

On the sectoral front, Nifty IT remained firm, boosted by upbeat earnings from U.S.-listed Cognizant, which raised its full-year guidance citing strong demand for AI-led services. This lifted Indian tech majors like Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and HCL Technologies. Financials too contributed to early gains, with the State Bank of India (SBI) rising 1% ahead of its Q4 earnings.

Adani Ports was among the top Nifty gainers, rising over 4% after reporting a 50% surge in Q4 net profit and providing robust guidance. Railtel Corporation shares soared more than 7% after the PSU posted a 46.3% jump in profit and a sharp rise in revenue in the March quarter.

However, the rally was tempered by weakness in metal, pharma, and realty stocks. JSW Steel, Bajaj Auto, and Hero MotoCorp were among the major drags on the Nifty.

Looking ahead, as the weekend sets in, all eyes are on the U.S. non-farm payrolls data due later today, which could offer fresh clues on the Federal Reserve’s rate trajectory. A cooler-than-expected jobs print could reinforce bets of a dovish pivot by the Fed—providing more room for risk assets to rally.

Market breadth remained negative with 2,123 stocks declining against 1,674 advancing on the BSE, reflecting the broad-based nature of the mid-session sell-off.