Benchmark indices Nifty and Sensex ended marginally lower on December 6 to snap their five-day gaining streak after a decline in IT and private bank stocks dampened market sentiment. In Friday's session, markets were mostly rangebound over RBI's decision to keep the repo rate unchanged and cut the cash reserve ratio.

At close, the Sensex was down 56.74 points or 0.07 percent at 81,709.12, and the Nifty was down 30.60 points or 0.12 percent at 24,677.80. About 2,289 shares advanced, 1,536 shares declined, and 100 shares unchanged.

At close, the Sensex was down 56.74 points or 0.07 percent at 81,709.12, and the Nifty was down 30.60 points or 0.12 percent at 24,677.80. About 2,289 shares advanced, 1,536 shares declined, and 100 shares unchanged.

On the contrary, Nifty Metal saw a sharp uptick in the afternoon with gains of over 1 percent each. Top names such as Vedanta, Tata Steel and JSW Steel lifted the index. Nifty Auto was also in top gear, rising almost a percent led by majors like Tata Motors, Baja Auto, Maruti Suzuki, and M&M. The PSU Bank index continued its exception form with gains of 0.5 percent and rallying over 5 percent since the start of the week.

The mid and small-cap indices jumped 0.4 and 0.6 percent to outperform the frontline indices. Although the sentiment remains positive, traders say that the outperformance trend may not be sustained, as FII buying is likely to favour large-cap stocks.

Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta rallied over 6 percent after the company updated the bourses about the release of encumbrances over its equity shares held by parent Vedanta Resources through subsidiaries. The company announced that all encumbrances tied to a $1.2 billion bond issued by Vedanta Resources Finance II PLC had been redeemed.

Maruti Suzuki, India's largest four-wheeler manufacturer, rallied over 1 percent to become one of the top gainers on the Nifty after the company announced it will increase the prices of its vehicles by up to 4 percent, depending on the variant, starting in January 2025.

MCX shares rallied more than 6 percent and charted a new record high of Rs 7,048.60, driven by heavy trading volumes. As much as seven lakh shares of MCX changed hands so far, already more than double the one-month daily traded average of three lakh shares.

Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki, SBI Life Insurance, and BPCL were the top gainers on the Nifty. Adani Ports, Cipla, Bharti Airtel, HDFC Life, and Asian Paints were the key laggards.

Follow #A3RT On Twitter @arbindtiwariT

Always "Trust & Trade" With #A3RT