The key equity benchmarks ended with significant losses today, declining for the second day in a row, as investor sentiment remained cautious amid rising geopolitical tensions following a deadly terrorist attack on tourists in Kashmir. The incident cast a shadow over the markets, with escalating tensions between India and Pakistan triggering a risk-off mood.

Meanwhile, the ongoing earnings season has done little to lift the mood, with a slew of companies missing estimates and reporting weaker-than-expected numbers, adding another layer of caution to an already jittery market.

The Nifty closed below the 24,050 mark. Barring Nifty IT index all the sectoral indices on the NSE were traded in red with media, realty and PSU bank stocks declining the most.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 588.90 points or 0.74% to 79,212.53. The Nifty 50 index lost 207.35 points or 0.86% to 24,039.35.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 2.44% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 2.56%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 722 shares rose and 3,242 shares fell. A total of 120 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, added 5.95% to 17.22.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index tumbled 3.54% to 1,547.75. The index jumped 0.14% in the past trading session.

Network 18 Media & Investments (down 5.07%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (down 4.96%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 4.95%), Dish TV India (down 4.6%), PVR Inox (down 3.38%), Sun TV Network (down 3.32%), Nazara Technologies (down 2.42%), D B Corp (down 2.27%), Tips Music (down 1.51%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Maruti Suzuki India declined 2.09% after the company has reported 4.3% fall in standalone net profit to Rs 3,711.1 crore despite a 5.9% increase in net sales to Rs 38,848.8 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Q4 FY24.

SBI Life Insurance Company jumped 5.12% after the company's net profit rose marginally to Rs 813.51 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 810.80 crore posted in Q4 FY24. However, total income dropped 35.66% YoY to Rs 24,169.41 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025.

Axis Bank declined 3.40% after the bank's standalone net profit declined 0.17% to Rs 7,117.50, as compared with Rs 7,129.67 crore in Q4 FY25. The bank's total income increased 5.65% to Rs 38,022.03 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Rs 35,990.33 crore in Q4 FY24.

Tech Mahindra rose 0.50% after the company's consolidated net profit advanced 18.66% to Rs 1,166.7 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 983.2 crore reported in Q3 FY25. However, revenue from operations declined marginally, 0.74%, to Rs 13,384.0 crore in the March quarter from Rs 13,285.6 crore recorded in the preceding quarter of FY24.

Mphasis advanced 2.38% after the company's consolidated net profit grew 4.36% to Rs 446.49 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with Rs 427.81 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations rose 4.17% to Rs 3,710 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 3,561.3 crore posted in Q3 FY25.

L&T Technology Services (LTTS) dropped 5.01% after its consolidated net profit declined 3.5% to Rs 311.1 crore in Q4 FY25, compared to Rs 322.4 crore in Q3 FY25. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 2,982.4 crore in the March 2025 quarter, marking a 12.42% increase from Rs 2,653.0 crore reported in the previous quarter.

Indian Energy Exchange shed 0.47%. The company's consolidated net profit rose 21.12% to Rs 117.11 crore on 17.29% increase in net sales to Rs 142.25 crore in Q4 March 2025 over Q4 March 2024.

Macrotech Developers fell 1.54%. The company reported 38.49% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 921.7 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 665.5 crore posted in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations rose 5.12% YoY to Rs 4,224.3 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025.

SBI Cards and Payment Services slumped 6.79% after the company reported 19% fall in net profit to Rs 534 crore despite an 8% increase in total income to Rs 4,832 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Q4 FY24.

Cyient tanked 5.47% after the company's consolidated net profit tumbled 5.33% to Rs 186.40 crore in Q4 FY25, compared with 196.90 crore in Q4 FY24. However, revenue from operations rose 3.50% year on year to Rs 1,950.2 crore in the fourth quarter of FY25.

AAVAS Financiers fell 2.54%. The company has reported 7.8% rise in net profit to Rs 153.68 crore on a 16.6% increase in total income to Rs 637.49 crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with Q4 FY24.

Rajoo Engineers advanced 2.99% after the company's consolidated net profit surged 121.28% to Rs 13.83 crore in Q4 FY25 compared with Rs 6.25 crore in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 70.65% YoY to Rs 89.90 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025.

Global Markets:

European stocks advanced on Friday as investors closely monitored earnings reports from companies amid persistent trade uncertainty.

Most Asian market ended higher, following a third consecutive day of gains on Wall Street. The rally was led by technology stocks, as investor sentiment improved with the U.S. signaling a softer stance on tariffs.

In Japan, inflation data showed Tokyo's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 3.5% year-on-year in April, up from 2.9% in March, reaching a two-year high. The core CPI, which excludes fresh food prices, increased to 3.4%, beating market forecasts of 3.2% and rising from 2.4% in the previous month.

The core-core CPI, which excludes both fresh food and energy and is closely monitored by the Bank of Japan, climbed to 3.1%, up from 2.2% in March. This reading remains above the central bank's 2% inflation target.

On Wall Street, all three major U.S. indices closed higher. The S&P 500 gained 2.03%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.74%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.23%.

The tech sector led the gains, with Amazon.com Inc. and NVIDIA Corporation rising over 3% each after both companies reported strong demand for AI data centers.

Market optimism was also supported by expectations of easing trade tensions. President Donald Trump stated that the U.S. had met with Chinese officials earlier in the day but did not provide details. This statement contrasted with Beijing's denial of ongoing trade talks, leaving the status of China-U.S. negotiations unclear.

In economic data, U.S. initial jobless claims for the week ended April 19 rose to 222,000, in line with forecasts and slightly up from 216,000 the prior week. Despite ongoing concerns about the economic impact of tariffs, claims remained within a stable range.

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