Sensex ends 110 pts lower ahead of Q2 GDP data; BSE Smallcap index up 2.4%

The benchmark indices ended Friday's volatile session in the negative territory ahead of the release of gross domestic product (GDP) numbers for the second quarter (July-September period) of the current fiscal, due later in the day. 

The S&P BSE Sensex slipped 110 points, or 0.25 per cent to 44,150 levels and the Nifty50 index ended at 12,969, down 18 points, or 0.14 per cent. Power Grid, HCL Tech, and ONGC (all down around 2 per cent) were the top Sensex laggards. 

On a weekly basis, Sensex gained 0.6 per cent while Nifty added 0.85 per cent. 

The broader market, however, outperformed the benchmark indices today. While the S&P BSE MidCap index surged 1.91 per cent to 16,915, the S&P BSE SmallCap index rallied an impressive 2.4 per cent to 16,875 levels. 

Among sectoral indices, barring Nifty IT, all other indices ended in the green. Nifty Auto gained 1.41 per cent while Nifty Realty surged 2.65 per cent. 

Shares of gas transmission companies rallied up to 19 per cent on the BSE during the day after oil regulator Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) notified regulations for unified gas transmission tariff structure. READ MORE

Global stocks

Asian shares stalled near record highs on Friday as investors weighed renewed doubts about a highly-anticipated coronavirus vaccine against hopes that some of the region’s economies will recovery quicker than their Western peers.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.04 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.33 per cent while shares in China rose 0.13 per cent after data showed Chinese industrial profits surged at the fastest pace since early 2017.

(With inputs from Reuters)