Sensex, Nifty draw back from lifetime highs on profit taking; HDFC Bank, ICICI major drag

Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty retracted from lifetime highs to settle lower on Friday due to profit-taking in frontline stocks HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank. The BSE Sensex declined 264.27 points or 0.31 per cent to settle at 85,571.85. During the day, it climbed 142.13 points or 0.16 per cent to reach a new record intra-day peak of 85,978.25.

The NSE Nifty dipped 37.10 points or 0.14 per cent to 26,178.95 after rising 61.3 points or 0.23 per cent to an all-time intra-day high of 26,277.35 during the day.

From the 30 Sensex firms, Power Grid, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Adani Ports and UltraTech Cement were among the laggards.

Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries, Titan, HCL Technologies and Bajaj Finserv were among the biggest gainers.

"Following the recent impressive surge, the benchmark indices experienced a sideways movement today as investors engaged in profit booking at elevated levels," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services said.

In Asian markets, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Hong Kong settled sharply higher while Seoul ended lower.

European markets were trading in the green. The US markets ended in positive territory on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) turned buyers on Thursday as they bought equities worth Rs 629.96 crore, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also bought equities worth Rs 2,405.12 crore.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.03 per cent to USD 71.58 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark jumped 666.25 points or 0.78 per cent to settle at an all-time high of 85,836.12 on Thursday. During the day, it reached a record intra-day peak of 85,930.43, surging 760.56 points or 0.89 per cent.

The Nifty climbed 211.90 points or 0.81 per cent to close at a record high of 26,216.05. During the day, it soared 246.75 points or 0.94 per cent to hit a fresh intra-day lifetime peak of 26,250.90.