MUMBAI: Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Friday amid a weak trend in Asian markets and fresh foreign fund outflows.
Benchmark indices fell as a result of the weak trend in index heavyweight Reliance Industries.
The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 123.03 points to 57,802.25. The broader NSE Nifty fell 61.1 points to 17,015.80.
From the Sensex stocks, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Reliance Industries, Titan, Asian Paints, Nestle and Tata Steel were the major laggards.
Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, IndusInd Bank, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and Larsen & Toubro were the gainers.
Buying in IT counters cushioned the fall to some extent.
Seoul, Japan, Shanghai, and Hong Kong were trading at lower prices on the Asian markets. The US markets ended higher on Thursday.
The benchmark Brent crude price fell 0.20 percent to USD 75.76 per barrel in the meantime.
Foreign Portfolio Investors offloaded equities worth Rs 995.01 crore on Thursday after a day’s breather, according to exchange data.
The BSE benchmark fell 289.31 points or 0.50 per cent to settle at 57,925.28 on Thursday. The Nifty dipped 75 points or 0.44 per cent to end at 17,076.90.