Indian equities ended lower on Thursday, with the Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex declining as losses in banking, metals and public-sector stocks offset gains elsewhere.
The Nifty 50 fell 0.48% to close at 24,245.80, while the BSE Sensex shed 0.70% to end at 79,912.10. Decliners outnumbered advancers by a wide margin on both exchanges, with 1,599 stocks falling against 989 rising on the National Stock Exchange and 2,307 declining versus 1,743 advancing on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
India’s volatility gauge, the India VIX, rose 5.66% to 11.16, reflecting increased market caution. The rupee strengthened 0.15% against the U.S. dollar to 95.56, while the dollar index edged up 0.06% to 99.15.
Among sectoral laggards, metals and mining stocks led declines, with Hindalco Industries down 3.04% at ₹1,021.00. HDFC Bank fell 1.75% to ₹714.45, and Mahindra & Mahindra slipped 1.65% to ₹3,342.10. Public-sector enterprises also weighed on the broader market.
On the upside, Kotak Mahindra Bank gained 1.84% to ₹424.35, while Adani Enterprises rose 1.52% to ₹3,159.30 and Adani Ports added 1.33% to ₹1,714.00. On the BSE Sensex, Kotak Mahindra Bank led gains with a 1.71% advance, followed by ICICI Bank and Tech Mahindra.
Commodities showed mixed performance, with gold futures down 0.43% at $4,633.10 per troy ounce and Brent crude rising 0.41% to $87.30 per barrel. Domestic crude oil futures were little changed at $82.37 per barrel.
