Nifty slides below 24,950 mark; financial services shares decline

The key domestic indices traded with modest losses in mid-morning trade. The Nifty traded below the 24,950 mark after the hitting day's high of 25,028.65 in morning trade. Financial services shares witnessed profit booking after advancing in the past three consecutive trading sessions.

At 11:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex slipped 244.87 points or 0.31% to 81,370.97. The Nifty 50 index lost 62.45 points or 0.25% to 24,936.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.05% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.12%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1,885 shares rose and 1,782 shares fell. A total of 139 shares were unchanged.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Financial Services index declined 0.68% to 23,603.65. The index rallied 2.34% in past three consecutive trading sessions.

Cholamandalam Investment & Finance Company (down 1.72%), ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company (down 1.6%), HDFC Asset Management Company (down 1.43%), ICICI Bank (down 1.38%), Power Finance Corporation (down 0.88%), HDFC Bank (down 0.8%), Axis Bank (down 0.77%), SBI Life Insurance Company (down 0.67%), Bajaj Finance (down 0.47%) and HDFC Life Insurance Company (down 0.45%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Infosys rose 0.83%. The company has announced a strategic collaboration with Zooplus to enhance its service capability and scalability.

Oberoi Realty added 0.32%. The realty majors board has approved the proposal for raising of funds upto Rs 6,000 crore by way of issuance of equity shares, eligible securities, other securities or instruments or any combination of securities by way of private placement.

Global Markets:

Most Asian stocks advanced on Friday, buoyed by South Korea's central bank decision to cut interest rates. The Bank of Korea (BoK) lowered its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 3.25%, marking its first rate reduction in over four years. The move signaled a shift away from its restrictive monetary policy stance in response to slowing economic growth and easing inflation.

While South Korean stocks rallied, China's markets retreated as investors cautiously awaited policy announcements from a scheduled finance ministry press conference. Hong Kong's markets were closed for a holiday.

In the US, stocks ended slightly lower on Thursday as hotter-than-expected consumer inflation data dampened investor sentiment. The S&P 500, NASDAQ Composite, and Dow Jones Industrial Average each declined by less than 0.25%.

Focus shifted to the upcoming third-quarter earnings season, which was set to kick off later that day. Investors were also eagerly awaiting the unveiling of Tesla's robotaxi and the release of producer price index (PPI) inflation data, both of which were expected to provide further insights into the US economy.

Headline US consumer price index (CPI) inflation eased slightly in September, falling from 2.5% to 2.4% year-over-year. However, core CPI inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose to 3.3% from 3.2%.

Additionally, initial jobless claims in the US unexpectedly increased for the week ending October 4, reaching 258,000. This represented the highest level of new jobless claims since June 2023.

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