Financial Stocks Lead Decline While Auto and IT Sectors Gain

On Friday, financial stocks anchored the market's fall, dragging the Sensex down by 455.59 points to 78,499.17 and the Nifty 50 down 65.35 points to 24,570.65.

The Financial Services, Private Bank and Consumer Durables indices posted the biggest percentage drops. In contrast, the Auto and Information Technology indices recorded the strongest upward movement, supported by gains in metal and PSU bank stocks.

Individual performers mirrored the sector trends. Grasim Industries, Tata Consultancy Services, Hindalco, Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Technologies and State Bank of India were the leading gainers. The laggards were Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Trent, ICICI Bank, Jio Financial Services and Shriram Finance.

The Nifty Mid‑Cap index edged up 0.22%, while the Small‑Cap index slipped 0.05%. Market analyst Sunil Shah noted that despite the negative sentiment from West Asian tensions, the overall market remains relatively calm, awaiting corporate earnings and global cues.