Market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Friday (August 14, 2026) as elevated oil prices and the prolonged U.S.-Iran impasse weighed on investor sentiment.

The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 70.71 points, or 0.09%, to settle at 78,009.25.

During the day, it declined 395.59 points, or 0.50%, to 77,684.37.

The 50-share NSE Nifty dipped 29.85 points, or 0.12%, to end at 24,366.

Stock markets decline in early trade; Sensex down 300 points From the Sensex pack, Asian Paints, InterGlobe Aviation, NTPC, Power Grid, State Bank of India and HCL Tech were among the major laggards.

Bharti Airtel, Adani Ports, ICICI Bank and Titan were among the winners.

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"Indian equity markets ended largely unchanged on Friday, struggling to build on supportive global cues as persistent uncertainty surrounding the U.S.-Iran standoff and the Strait of Hormuz kept investors cautious heading into the weekend.

Despite a softer U.S. inflation reading and record closes on Wall Street, elevated crude oil prices and the absence of any diplomatic breakthrough continued to cap risk appetite," Ponmudi R., CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

What is Closing Auction Session? | Explained Geopolitical tensions remained the dominant market driver, he added.

"Indian equity markets ended lower on Friday as renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher, overshadowing the positive global cues from Wall Street's record close.

A notable positive for the domestic market was the Nifty-50's ability to defend the 24,325 support zone for the second consecutive session," Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth, a Research Analyst firm, said.

The BSE SmallCap Select index declined 0.65% and the MidCap Select index dipped 0.13%.

Among sectoral indices, Housing Finance declined 1.40%, MidSmall Private Banks Quality Tilt 0.58%, MidSmall Private Banks 0.46%, Oil & Gas 0.45%, Energy 0.44% and Services 0.39%.

Hospitals jumped 1.49%, Telecommunication climbed 0.86%, Insurance 0.21% and Consumer Durables 0.17%.

On the weekly front, the BSE benchmark declined 489.92 points, or 0.62%, and the Nifty dipped 204.65 points, or 0.83%.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 and Shanghai's SSE Composite index ended higher, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index settled lower.

Markets in Europe were trading mostly higher.

U.S. markets ended in positive territory on Thursday (August 13, 2026).

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹510.69 crore on Thursday (August 13, 2026), according to exchange data.

On Thursday (August 13, 2026), fag-end buying helped the Sensex end the session in the positive territory.

The 30-share index settled 113.61 points, or 0.15%, higher at 78,079.96.

The Nifty was marginally down by 40.10 points, or 0.16%, to end at 24,395.85, registering its third day of decline.