Stocks end lower amid profit booking at record levels

The Indian stock market on Friday closed lower as investors locked in gains near record highs. At close, Sensex ended with a loss of 367 points, or 0.43%, at 85,041.45, while the Nifty 50 settled at 26,042.30, down 100 points, or 0.38%.

The BSE Midcap index slipped by 0.18% while the Smallcap index dropped 0.34%. The overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms dropped to nearly Rs 474 lakh crore from Rs 475 lakh crore in the previous session.

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On a weekly basis, the Sensex inched up by 112 points, or 0.13%, while the Nifty 50 moved up by 0.30%.

Among the sectors, almost all the indices ended lower, barring Nifty Metal, which was up 0.59%, Consumer Durables up by 0.34%, and FMCG up by 0.03%.

Nifty IT (1.03%) ended as the top loser. Nifty Media (0.62%), Auto (0.52%), and Financial Services (0.49%) also lost significantly. Nifty Bank fell 0.29%.

Railway-linked shares extended their rally, rising to 12%. Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL), Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) and RailTel were among the top gainers.

On Nifty, the top gainers were Titan Company (2.17%), Hindalco Industries (1%), and Nestle India (0.82%). The losers were Asian Paints (1.40%), Shriram Finance (1.37 %), and Bajaj Finance (1.30%).

Out of 4,379 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,745 advanced, while 2,456 declined. Some 178 stocks remained unchanged. On BSE, some 112 stocks hit their 52-week highs while 120 stocks hit their 52-week lows in intraday trade.

Those hitting highs included Vedanta, Titan, and Eicher Motors, while ACC, Poly Medicure, PCBL Chemical, HFCL, and Embassy Developments hit their lows.

In the coming days, progress in India–U.S. trade talks, rupee stability, FII trends, and movements in commodity prices will be the key drivers of the Indian market.