As per provisional closing, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 197.97 points or 0.25% to 77,860.19. The Nifty 50 index lost 43.40 points or 0.18% to 23,559.95.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.13% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.68%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,520 shares rose and 2,400 shares fell. A total of 144 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, tumbled 3.45% to 13.69.

Economy:

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) Friday cut the repo rate'the rate at which the RBI lends to other banks'by 25 basis points to 6.25% after keeping it unchanged for two years.

This is the first rate cut initiated by the RBI in five years, the last one being in May 2020. RBI, however, continues with the neutral monetary policy stance and remains unambiguously focused on a durable alignment of inflation with the target while supporting growth.

The decisions are in consonance with the objective of achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4% within a band of +/- 2% while supporting growth, the central bank noted. This was the first RBI policy under the new Governor Sanjay Malhotra and also the first RBI MPC meeting after the Union Budget 2025-2026 was presented on February 1.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index fell 1.38% to 6,196.75. The index fell 1.97% in two consecutive trading sessions.

Bank of Maharashtra (down 2.27%), State Bank of India (down 1.98%), Punjab & Sind Bank (down 1.72%), Bank of Baroda (down 1.52%), Union Bank of India (down 1.38%), Bank of India (down 1.33%), Indian Overseas Bank (down 1.04%), Canara Bank (down 0.92%), UCO Bank (down 0.87%), and Indian Bank (down 0.74%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

ITC fell 2.57%. The company reported a 1.2% rise in net profit to Rs 5,638 crore on a 8.6% increase in net revenue to Rs 17,726 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Q3 FY24.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) added 1.86% after the company reported a 19.06% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 2,964.31 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 2,489.73 crore in Q3 FY24.Revenue from operations jumped 20.31% YoY to Rs 30,963.76 crore in Q3 FY25. Bharti Airtel jumped 3.56% after the telecom major's consolidated net profit soared 460.93% to Rs 16,134.6 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 2,876.4 crore reported in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations increased 19.07% YoY to Rs 45,129.3 crore in Q3 FY25.

Britannia Industries fell 1.82%. The company's consolidated net profit increased 4.5% to Rs 581.69 crore on 6.5% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 4,463.30 crore in Q3 FY25 over Q3 FY24.

Hero MotoCorp rose 1.17% after the company reported a 12.1% increase in standalone net profit to Rs 1,202.84 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 1,073.38 crore in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations rose 5% to Rs 10,210.78 crore in Q3 FY25.

Aurobindo Pharma declined 0.67%. The company reported 10.04% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 845.57 crore in Q3 FY25, compared to Rs 939.97 crore posted in Q3 FY24. However, revenue from operations increased 8.53% year on year (YoY) to Rs 7,978.52 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

Gulf Oil Lubricants India zoomed 7.94% after the company's net profit jumped 21.59% to Rs 98.17 crore on 10.72% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 904.88 crore in Q3 FY25 over Q3 FY24.

Cochin Shipyard slipped 3.55% after the company's consolidated net profit fell 27.6% to Rs 176.99 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 244.38 crore posted in Q3 FY24. However, revenue from operations rose 8.6% YoY to Rs 1,147.64 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) added 2.54% after the company reported a 100% surge in consolidated net profit to Rs 219.7 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 108.2 crore in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations soared 108% to Rs 773.5 crore in Q3 FY25 as compared with Rs 371.5 crore in Q3 FY24.

PG Electroplast rallied 3.73% after the company's consolidated net profit surged 108.7% to Rs 40.14 crore in Q3 FY25 as against Rs 19.24 crore posted in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations surged 81.9% to Rs 967.69 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2024.

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders added 1.56% after the company's consolidated net profit surged 28.75% to Rs 807.04 crore on a 33.06% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 3,143.62 crore in Q3 FY25 over Q3 FY24.

Sonata Software dropped 11.62%. The company's profit after tax (PAT) for Q3'25 stood at Rs 105 crore, quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) de-growth of 1.4%. Revenue rose 31% QoQ to Rs 2842.8 crore in Q3'25.

Global Markets:

European market declined on Friday as corporate earnings, monetary policy, and key U.S. job data remained in focus. Investors are also waiting for French and German import and export data, house price data from the U.K., and an industrial production print from Spain.

Bank of England cut its key rate by 25 basis points and signaled more cuts were on the horizon in 2025

Asian stocks ended mixed as investors assessed Japan's household spending data. The country's household spending in December rose 2.7% year on year in real terms.

A robust labor market could strengthen the Fed's resolve to maintain current interest rates, as the central bank has indicated its intention to do, citing concerns about persistent inflation.

On Wall Street, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5%, while the S&P 500 added 0.36%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed, declining 0.28%.

Amazon.com Inc. shares fell over 4% in after-hours trading after the e-commerce giant projected first-quarter 2025 sales between $151 billion and $155.5 billion, missing analysts' expectations.

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