Iran war, HDFC Bank offset value buying as Indian shares log weekly losses

Indian shares climbed on Friday, helping limit steep weekly losses, as investors sought bargains following a sharp selloff triggered by concerns over the Iran war and a decline in heavyweight HDFC Bank.

The Nifty 50 rose 0.49% to 23,114.50 and the BSE Sensex gained 0.44% to 74,532.96, on Friday.

The rupee breached the 93 per dollar mark for the first time to an all-time low against the U.S. dollar on Friday.

The Nifty and Sensex fell 3.3% each on Thursday, their worst session since June 4, 2024. However, they ended the week down only 0.16% and 0.04%, helped by value buying earlier and a partial rebound on Friday.

Brent crude traded at $111 a barrel on Friday after leading European nations and Japan offered to join efforts to secure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

It rose to $119.13 a barrel in the previous session.

“Investors remain wary of tensions in the Middle East, as even an immediate end to the war would leave energy supplies taking months to normalise,” said Vivek Shukla, regional head at Emkay Global Financial Services.

“Still, the recent correction is beginning to draw value buyers, with more attractive valuations and entry points cushioning the markets from steep losses, as seen this week,” Shukla said.

Ten of the 16 major sectors posted weekly losses. Small-caps fell 1.1%, while mid-caps rose 0.2%.

HDFC Bank, the benchmarks’ top weight, lost 4.5% this week after the abrupt exit of its part-time chairman.

The stock pulled financials and private banks down 1.4% and 1%, respectively.

The auto index rose 2.2% this week after its worst weekly showing in six years last week.

On the day, IT index gained 2.2% after U.S. peer Accenture posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings.