Sensex slips to 38,963 while Nifty ends below 11,720

Equity benchmark indices ended in the negative zone on Friday after a volatile session as traders resorted to profit booking in the absence of any positive cues.

The S & P BSE Sensex closed 18 points lower at 38,963 while the Nifty 50 was down 13 points to 11,712.

IT stocks were the worst sufferers through the day. Tata Consultancy Services dipped 2.8 per cent, Tech Mahindra 2.4 per cent and HCL Tech 2.3 per cent.

Britannia and Hindustan Lever also slipped between 1.7 and 2.5 per cent.

However, Bharti Airtel closed 3 per cent up after the firm's Rs 25,000 crore rights issue opened for subscription. The capital infusion is aimed at building large network capacity and technology partnerships to ensure strong customer experience.

Bombay Dyeing surged 5 per cent after reporting profit of Rs 1,253 crore in Q4 of FY19 against loss of Rs 159 crore in Q3 of FY19. Revenue increased to Rs 2,786 crore against Rs 413 crore on q-o-q basis.

Meanwhile, Asian share markets were calm amid thin holiday trade.

As investors await US jobs report, global policymakers continue to grapple with slow wage growth and lukewarm inflation which makes monetary policy decision-making complicated.

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