Indian equity benchmarks ended slightly lower on Friday as investors digested a series of Q1 FY27 earnings announcements amid the ongoing results season. Sentiment remained cautious due to the absence of strong market triggers, with participants closely monitoring monsoon progress, commodity prices, and geopolitical developments.
The Sensex declined 70.71 points (0.09%) to 78,009.25, while the Nifty 50 fell 29.85 points (0.12%) to close at 24,366, slipping below the 24,400 mark. Broader markets also remained weak, with the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices losing 0.23% and 0.43%, respectively.
Sectorally, pharma, metal, and auto stocks were under pressure, while media and consumer durables shares outperformed. The Nifty Pharma index dropped 0.9%, led by losses in Ipca Laboratories, Laurus Labs, and Zydus Lifesciences.
On the macroeconomic front, India's WPI inflation eased marginally to 9.78% in July from 9.87% in June. While inflation in fuel and power moderated sharply, price pressures in primary articles and manufactured products remained elevated.
Among earnings-driven movers, Tata Motors fell nearly 4% after reporting an 80% decline in Q1 profit. Conversely, KMC Speciality Hospitals, Honasa Consumer, Praj Industries, and Jubilant FoodWorks gained following strong quarterly results.
In the IPO market, Shiprocket and Behari Lal Engineering witnessed robust investor demand, attracting subscriptions of 85.7 times and 89.5 times, respectively.
Global markets remained supportive, with most Asian markets ending higher and European equities advancing. Investors drew comfort from easing U.S. inflation data, which reduced expectations of a near-term Federal Reserve rate hike. Meanwhile, rising crude oil prices amid renewed U.S.-Iran tensions and ongoing geopolitical uncertainties continued to keep market participants cautious.
Overall, markets traded range-bound with stock-specific action dominating, while investors await fresh cues from global developments, commodity prices, and the remaining earnings announcements.