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Mumbai: Equity indices ended almost flat on Friday in choppy trading as weakness in information technology stocks hit by US tariff concerns offset gains in auto shares driven by optimism around GST cuts. For the week, the stock measures notched up 1% gains, rebounding from the previous week's losses NSE's Nifty gained 6.7 points to close at 24,741. BSE's Sensex fell 7.25 points to end at 80,710.76. Elsewhere in Asia, markets rose ahead of an important August US jobs report scheduled on Friday evening. China gained 1.24%, Hong Kong rose 1.5%, Taiwan climbed 1.3%, Japan added 1.03%, while South Korea edged up 0.1%. The jobs report which came out after trading hours in Mumbai, showed the unemployment rate was climbing, increasing expectations of more interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve. Lower US rates could weaken the dollar and drive more flows into other global markets. Europe's Stoxx 600 was up 1.2% at the time of going to print."Indian markets are poised to recover next week, supported by buoyant global cues and expectations of lower US rates, which are expected to boost global risk assets," said Devarsh Vakil, head of prime research, HDFC Securities.The Nifty however faces a strong hurdle at 25,000. "For a fresh leg of the uptrend, a decisive breakout above 25,000 is essential," said Nilesh Jain, head-technical and derivatives research, Centrum Broking. "A successful move above this level could open the gates for a rally towards 25,300 and 25,500, while immediate support lies at 24,520." 123728892The Nifty IT index fell 1.4%, extending losses to the fourth straight day after an unconfirmed report that Donald Trump may impose tariffs on the Indian software services industry sparked a sell-off. The index, which had slipped up to 3% earlier in the day, pared some losses after the report was withdrawn.Auto shares were the top gains on expectations that the GST cuts for vehicles would boost demand. The auto index rose 1.3% with Eicher Motors and M&M gaining 2.4% and 2.3% respectively. The India VIX, the market's fear gauge, slipped 0.7% to 10.78. Among broader indices, the Nifty Midcap 150 edged up 0.1%, while the Nifty Smallcap 250 fell 0.23%.

Mumbai: Bank of Baroda (BoB) has become the third public sector bank to declare Reliance Communications' (RCom) loan accounts and its erstwhile promoter Anil Ambani as fraud, citing misutilisation of borrowed funds, diversion of loan proceeds, unauthorised related-party transactions, and improper use of inter-corporate deposits.BoB's total fund- and non-fund-based exposure to RCom stood at ₹2,463 crore, of which ₹1,656 crore remained outstanding as of end-August. The loans and guarantees were first classified as non-performing on June 5, 2017.Earlier this year, State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender, marked RCom's loan accounts as fraudulent in June, followed by Bank of India on August 24, citing alleged fund diversion and breaches of loan terms.A spokesperson for the Anil Ambani Group denied all allegations and said the group would seek to clear its name in the court of law. "It is a matter of record that RCom had a consortium of 14 lenders. After an inordinate delay of more than 10 years, select lenders have now chosen to initiate proceedings in a staggered and selective manner targeting Anil Ambani," the spokesperson said.In a letter to the company, shared with the exchanges late Thursday, BoB said each identified irregularity has been corroborated by specific transaction details, fund flow analysis, banking records and supporting documentation contained in a forensic audit report (FAR) done by BDO India LLP.The chronology of events mentioned by the bank in its letter to the company shows that the first show-cause notice to RCom and Anil Ambani along with other directors was given on January 2, 2024. After several communications between the bank and Anil Ambani, a personal hearing was held on July 18 this year, following which a second show cause notice was issued to the company on August 29, 2025."During the personal hearing held on July 18, 2025, and subsequent written submissions dated July 22, 2025, the noticee has conspicuously failed to produce any material evidence, contemporaneous records or substantive factual documentation to rebut the specific allegations of financial irregularities and fraudulent conduct detailed in the show cause notice," BoB said.