The Indian markets continued its slump for the second consecutive day on Friday. After a volatile trading session, both benchmark indices closed in the red.
Sensex closed at 18,450, down 0.32 per cent and the Nifty closed at 5,553.25, down 0.39 per cent.
On the BSE, most sectors closed in the red led by FMCG, consumer durables and capital goods while oil and gas sector supported the index.
On the NSE, Maruti, ONGC, HCL Tech, Sesagoa and Hindalco were the top gainers while NMDC, ITC, HDFC, NTPC and Ambuja Cements were the top losers.
Head Research, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Alex Mathews said: "The market breadth remained negative as there were seen 1,421 stocks advancing against 1,305 stocks declining. The sell off which witnessed today was pure technical as the Nifty has fallen below its 200 DMA(Day Moving Averages) which may lead the markets towards 5,538 levels."
"For the Indian markets next trigger will be the IIP data for the month February and the corporate earnings of Infosys which is also due on April 12," he added.