Equity benchmark indices traded in the negative zone amid sustained foreign fund outflow and a mixed trend in Asian peers. On the sectoral front, gains seen in banking and pharma stocks were offset by losses in IT stocks. The IT sub-index of NSE was lower by 0.56% on the other hand, the Nifty Pharma index rose 0.70%.
Among Nifty stocks,
Divis Labs was the top gainer, up 1.50% followed by Adani Ports and Coal India, which gained 1.47% and 0.86% respectively. ICICI Bank,
Reliance Industries, Coal India, Bajaj Finance, IOC, Tata Consumer and Titan were the other gainers in the Nifty.
Tata Steel, JSW Steel,
TCS and Bajaj Finserv were down 1% each, Britannia, Eicher Motors and HDFC Life stocks dragged on the NSE index.
The 30-share BSE index started on a slightly positive note but soon turned negative to trade 65 points or 0.12% lower at 52,253.29. Similarly, the broader Nifty dipped 24 points down to 15,656.05.
The Indian Rupee slipped nearly 12 paise and trading at an over 9-week low against the Dollar.
Meanwhile, Asian markets were mixed in Friday morning trade ahead of the U.S. jobs report set to be released later.