SENSEX down 600 pts, NIFTY50 below 25,000: Axis Bank’s weak performance and other factors behind market fall

Meanwhile, the broader market, which opened with gains, failed to keep up the momentum and slipped into the red during the day. Both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices were trading down by 0.43% and 0.53%, respectively.

Here are the key factors behind the market’s decline on Friday

Banking stocks were the biggest dragger for the equity benchmark indices on Friday, with Nifty Bank dropping 1% to the 56,262.55 level.

Weak earnings by Axis Bank dampened the overall sentiment, with the private lender being the top loser on Friday.

Shares of Axis Bank had declined over 6 on the NSE in the early session as the private sector lender reported a 3% drop for Q1 FY26 consolidated net profit at ₹6,243.72 crore, impacted by the implementation of changes in non-performing assets and loan upgrade policy.

The bank's core income showed low growth in the reporting period, but it was a ₹614 crore hit brought about by what it called a "technical impact," which hurt the profits.

Last seen, Axis Bank shares were trading at ₹1,109.70 apiece, falling 4.32%. The stock was the biggest loser on the 50-share index as well.

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) will be announcing its June quarter earnings later in the day. According to experts, the oil-to-telecom conglomerate is expected to deliver a strong quarterly performance, aided by growth in key businesses like oil-to-chemicals (O2C), retail, and telecom.

Other major earnings on Friday include JSW Steel, Hindustan Zinc, Bandhan Bank, Indiamart, Hatsun Agro, and others.

Big private sector lenders like HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank are scheduled to announce their Q1 earnings on Saturday. Investors will closely watch the numbers for further cues.

The market participants also remained cautious following US and India trade talks.

On Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that the negotiations between India and the US are underway to iron out pending issues for a trade deal. India and the US have been holding negotiations for the trade pact primarily to keep the tariffs below 20%.

"We're very close to a deal with India, where they open it up," Trump said on Wednesday.

The US president said the proposed deal could provide the American companies greater access into the Indian market in line with the trade pact between the US and Indonesia.

Foreign investors have been maintaining their buy position for some time—making investors worried.

According to exchange data, on Thursday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹3,694.31 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth ₹2,820.77 crore on a net basis.

India’s volatility index, VIX, zoomed 5% to hit a high of 11.86 on Friday. Last seen, it was up 2.62% at the 11.54 level.