After hitting a fresh record high of 22,298 in early deals, the benchmark Nifty50 index on Friday succumbed to profit booking in the second half dragged by IT and select financial shares.

The index closed at 22,213, down 5 points or 0.02 per cent while the BSE Sensex ended at 73,143, down 15 points or 0.02 per cent .

The 30-pack Sensex, which climbed a new peak of 73,394.44, gave up the gains to close 0.02 per cent lower at 73,143. The broad-based Nifty, too, ended 0.02 per cent down at 22,213 after touching a new high of 22,297.50.

On the broader market front, the Nifty Midcap 100 closed 0.31 per cent higher, and the Nifty SmallCap 100 closed 0.38 per cent higher, both outperforming the benchmark indices.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty media led with a 1.2 per cent gain followed by Nifty Realty and Nifty Consumer Durables, up 1 per cent and 0.6 per cent .

The Nifty PSU Bank index closed 1.1 per cent , followed by Nifty IT, Nifty Bank, and Nifty Metals, all down 0.2 per cent each.

The Bank Nifty index maintained its robust momentum, breaking past the 46,500 level, which is now established as a formidable support.

Asian Paints, Maruti Suzuki, HCL Tech, NTPC, SBI, TCS, JSW Steel, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, ITC, Axis Bank, and TCS were the top laggards, down up to 1.4 per cent.

Notably, the capital goods and industrial sectors showed strength, supported by advancements in manufacturing and services.

Banking stocks weakened after global brokerage firm Goldman Sachs downgraded ratings on multiple banks, signalling the end of a Goldilocks period characterised by robust growth and visible profitability in the financial sector.

Goldman Sachs cited escalating headwinds in the Indian financial services sector, including mounting pressure on the cost of funds, rising consumer leverage, and structural funding issues.

With Q3FY24 results season behind us, the market focus will be on the macro developments – both domestic and international.

From the global market perspective, it opened mainly higher following Nvidia’s impressive earnings, which sparked a surge in other tech firms and propelled Wall Street to yet another record high.

Germany’s DAX rose by 0.1 per cent to 17,382.15 despite reports that the GDP of the nation shrank by 0.3 per cent from October to December of last year. In Paris, the CAC 40 rose 0.1 per cent to 7,916.12. The FTSE 100 was up 0.1 per cent at 7,691.44.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.4 per cent at 7,643.60, while the Kospi in Seoul increased by 0.1 per cent to 2,667.70. The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.55 per cent to close at 3,004.88, while the Nikkei 225 finished 2.19 per cent higher at 39,098.68.