The Indian stock market ended in the green on Friday, 3 July, but retreated sharply from the day’s highs as investors booked profits at elevated levels, triggering a sharp reversal in the benchmark indices during the second half of the session.
The day began on a strong note, with the benchmark indices opening sharply higher, buoyed by robust buying in technology and pharma stocks. However, the market failed to sustain the momentum as the session progressed, giving up a significant portion of its intraday gains before ending with modest advances.
The Nifty 50 retreated 108 points from the day’s high to settle at 24,270, up 0.40% from the previous close. Meanwhile, the Sensex erased 391 points from its intraday high to end the session with a gain of 0.35%, closing at 77,766.
The broader market followed a similar trend, with both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 surrendering most of their intraday gains to end the session on a mixed note.
Among the sectoral gainers, Nifty Realty continued to lead the rally, rising another 2.25%. It was followed by Nifty Pharma, Nifty IT, and Nifty Cement, all of which gained more than 1%.
On the downside, Nifty PSU Bank extended its losing streak, falling 1.60%, while Nifty Auto and Nifty Metal slipped 0.44% each.
Meanwhile, technology stocks ended the week positively, with the Nifty IT index surging nearly 0.50%, as a softer-than-expected U.S. jobs report eased concerns over near-term Federal Reserve rate hikes.
The latest rebound has helped revive investor confidence in technology stocks, which remained under sustained selling pressure throughout the first half of the year.
