Benchmark BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty settled lower for the second consecutive session on Friday amid weak trend in the US markets and losses in index major Reliance and Hindustan Unilever.
The Sensex declined 236.66 points or 0.39 percent to close at 60,621.77. The broader NSE Nifty went lower by 80.20 points or 0.44 percent to end at 18,027.65. At intraday the indices fell 273.18 points or 0.44 percent to 60,585.25.
The Sensex pack's biggest laggards included Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance, Nestle, Bajaj Finserv, Reliance Industries, Larsen & Toubro, Maruti, Infosys, and Bharti Airtel. Among the winners were Power Grid, HDFC Bank, HDFC, ITC, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, and State Bank of India.
Concerns over royalty and central services arrangement fee increases to its parent Unilever group caused the FMCG giant Hindustan Unilever to lose approximately 4 percent of its value.
International Markets: Other Asian equity markets closed in the black, including those in Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. In mid-session trades, European benchmarks were trading higher. On Thursday, U.S. markets had a lower closing price.
Crude Oil: Benchmark Brent crude for global oil prices increased 0.82 percent to $86.87 per barrel.
According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net purchasers in the capital markets, purchasing shares worth Rs. 399.98 crore.
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