Sensex, Nifty end sideways; media shares rally; VIX slides 1.85%

The key equity benchmarks ended sideways on Friday as market sentiment remained cautious, with concerns over US tariffs and fluctuating trade policies unsettling global financial markets. The Nifty ended above the 22,550 mark. Media, oil & gas, and metal shares advanced while realty, consumer durables, and IT shares declined.

As per provisional closing, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, shed 7.51 points, or 0.01%, to 74,332.58. The Nifty 50 index rose 7.80 points, or 0.03%, to 22,552.50.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.30% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.75%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,507 shares rose and 1,476 shares fell. A total of 131 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 1.85% to 13.47.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index added 1.83% to 1,488.95. The index rallied 8.01% in four consecutive trading sessions.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises (up 5.83%), Network 18 Media & Investments (up 3.04%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (up 2.45%), Saregama India (up 2.39%), Den Networks (up 1.71%), Sun TV Network (up 0.97%), and Tips Music (up 0.24%) added.

On the other hand, PVR Inox (down 2.12%), Dish TV India (down 0.75%), and Nazara Technologies (down 0.1%) edged lower.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Inox Wind jumped 11.50% after the company secured a 153 MW order from a prominent renewable energy developer, a member of a large global clean energy company.

Kalpataru Projects International rose 1.64% after the company and its international subsidiaries secured new orders worth Rs 2,306 crore.

Transrail Lighting fell 1.07% after the companys board approved the resignation of Ajit Pratap Singh as chief financial officer (CFO) and key managerial personnel (KMP) of the company, effective from 8 March 2025.

Bharat Electronics added 1.54% after the company announced that it has secured additional orders worth Rs 577 crore since 20 February 2025.

Gensol Engineering slipped 4.22% after the company announced the resignation of its chief financial officer (CFO) and key managerial personnel, Ankit Jain, effective from 6 March 2025.

Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) added 1.23% after the company announced that it has received a letter of acceptance (LoA) for an EPC contract worth Rs 156.35 crore from South Western Railway.

Kamat Hotels (India) surged 9.79% after the company signed an agreement for the management and operations of the Orchid Hotel in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand.

Omaxe jumped 7.72% after the company announced that the UPSRTC has awarded a contract to modernize six key bus terminals in the state under the PPP model to BeTogether.

BeTogether is a wholly owned subsidiary of Omaxe. It aims to reshape the urban and economic development in India through strategic collaborations and public-private partnerships (PPP). The six key bus terminals for which the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) has awarded the modernization contract are Ghaziabad, Lucknow (Gomti Nagar), Prayagraj, Kaushambi, Ayodhya, and Lucknow (Amausi).

Global Markets:

European markets traded lower on Friday as investors digested U.S. tariff exemptions, a Wall Street sell-off, and increased interest rate uncertainty.

The European Central Bank (ECB) stated that its monetary policy was becoming "meaningfully less restrictive," signaling a more cautious approach in upcoming meetings following six rate cuts since last June. The ECB's macroeconomic projections revised the 2025 headline inflation forecast upward to 2.3% from 2.1%, while lowering the growth forecast to 0.9% from 1.1%.

Most Asian stocks ended lower after Wall Street after U.S. President Donald Trumps tariff concessions failed to calm investors.

Traders were also worried by economic data from the U.S., which raised alarm that Trumps policies could hinder the U.S. economy.

Chinas export growth slowed more than expected at the start of the year, according to data from the customs authority released on Friday, as higher U.S. tariffs partly offset momentum in the countrys rare bright spot. Exports in the January to February period rose 2.3% in U.S. dollar terms from a year earlier, significantly undershooting expectations of a 5% increase.

US stocks closed sharply lower Thursday amid uncertainty around President Donald Trumps tariff policies, while investors remained cautious ahead of a key employment report expected to provide insights into the nations economic health. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 1%, while the NASDAQ Composite dropped 2.6%. The S&P 500 also declined 1.8%.

Technology stocks experienced significant losses. NVIDIA Corporation stock plunged 5.7%, while Tesla Inc. closed 5.6% lower. Broadcom Inc. closed 6.3% lower after jumping 13% in early trade on Thursday. The company reported upbeat guidance for the current quarter and better-than-expected first-quarter results on growing AI-led demand for its custom chips.

U.S. jobless claims fell more than expected last week to 221,000, signaling a strong labor market. For the week ending February 22, initial claims under the Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees program rose to 1,634, up from 614 the previous week.

Investors now await Fridays employment report for insights on the economy and potential Fed rate moves amid tariff concerns and rising factory costs.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve, a day before meeting with executives from the crypto currency industry at the White House. The reserve will be capitalized with bitcoin owned by the federal government that was forfeited as part of criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings.

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