Indian shares gave up early gains to settle lower on Friday, dragged down by energy stocks, a day ahead of the federal budget that comes amid the country's worst economic slowdown in a decade.

The NSE <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-nifty-end-lower-on-coronavirus-fears-metals-drag-277556">Nifty </a>50 index ended 0.61 per cent lower at 11,962.12, while the S&amp;P BSE <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-nifty-end-lower-on-coronavirus-fears-metals-drag-277556">Sensex </a>closed 0.47 per cent weaker&nbsp;at 40,723.49.

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The Nifty on Friday closed below the 12,000 level for the first time since December&nbsp;12, ending the month 1.70 per cent&nbsp;lower.

Markets have been volatile ahead of the 2020-2021 budget on February&nbsp;1, when Prime Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/eu-defers-anti-caa-resolution-vote-relief-for-modi-govt-277447">Narendra Modi'</a>s government is expected to raise spending on infrastructure and cut some personal tax, to spur consumer demand and investment, government sources and economists have said.

Indian stock markets will be open for trading on Saturday on account of the budget, but debt and forex markets will remain shut.

Record profit from India's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) failed to lift sentiment as energy stocks fell sharply, led by a 2.2&nbsp;per cent drop in <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/mukesh-ambanis-reliance-posts-record-profit-on-consumer-strength-274936">Reliance </a>Industries Ltd, the country's biggest company by market value.

The Nifty energy index shed 2.66 per cent, marking its worst day since early September, as oil prices were set for a fourth consecutive weekly loss on Friday.&nbsp;

Shares in <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/slowdown-in-india-expected-to-hit-job-sector-sbi-report-274275">SBI </a>ended 2.5&nbsp;per cent firmer, while those in private-sector lender <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/kotak-mahindra-bank-q4-profit-rises-14-to-rs-2038-crore-214769">Kotak Mahindra</a> Bank gained 3.9 per cent after the central bank eased rules around the shareholding of its billionaire-founder.

Indian shares gave up early gains to settle lower on Friday, dragged down by energy stocks, a day ahead of the federal budget that comes amid the country's worst economic slowdown in a decade.

Indian shares gave up early gains to settle lower on Friday, dragged down by energy stocks, a day ahead of the federal budget that comes amid the country's worst economic slowdown in a decade. The NSE Nifty 50 index ended 0.61 per cent lower at 11,962.12, while the S&P BSE Sensex closed 0.47 per cent weaker at 40,723.49. Also read: Sharp slowdown in India drag on the world economy, says IMF The Nifty on Friday closed below the 12,000 level for the first time since December 12, ending the month 1.70 per cent lower. Markets have been volatile ahead of the 2020-2021 budget on February 1, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is expected to raise spending on infrastructure and cut some personal tax, to spur consumer demand and investment, government sources and economists have said. Indian stock markets will be open for trading on Saturday on account of the budget, but debt and forex markets will remain shut. Record profit from India's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) failed to lift sentiment as energy stocks fell sharply, led by a 2.2 per cent drop in Reliance Industries Ltd, the country's biggest company by market value. The Nifty energy index shed 2.66 per cent, marking its worst day since early September, as oil prices were set for a fourth consecutive weekly loss on Friday. Shares in SBI ended 2.5 per cent firmer, while those in private-sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank gained 3.9 per cent after the central bank eased rules around the shareholding of its billionaire-founder.

Nifty, Sensex end lower ahead of budget; energy stocks lead losses

Indian oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd posted another record quarterly profit on Friday, as double-digit growth at its consumer-facing businesses cushioned weakness in its energy divisions.

Revenue at its retail and telecoms units each jumped more than 25 per cent in the December quarter as the company, headed by Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, invests heavily to bring them on par with its dominant petrochemicals and refining businesses.

"We saw consistent same-store sales growth and record footfall across our stores," Ambani said in a statement, with the remarks coming when growth in Asia's third-largest economy has slowed to multi-year lows.

The Mumbai-headquartered company has rapidly grown to become India's largest retailer with over 10,000 stores selling groceries, consumer electronics and apparel, while its telecom unit, Jio, has become the country's largest wireless operator in about three years since launch.

Profit at Jio surged 62 per cent to 13.50 billion rupees, led by subscriber additions of 14.8 million during the reported quarter.

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Reliance, which runs the world's biggest oil refining complex, said gross refining margin - the profit earned on each barrel of crude oil processed - was $9.2 per barrel, slightly lower than the prior quarter but better than a year earlier.

"The third-quarter results for our energy business reflect the weak global economic environment and volatility in energy markets," Ambani, the company's chairman, said.

Meanwhile, the proposed purchase of 20 per cent in Reliance's oil-to-chemicals arm by Saudi Aramco will take a "few months" to be finalized, Joint Chief Financial Officer V Srikanth said at a press briefing, adding Reliance wouldn't comment on a specific timeframe for the deal to close.

"We are making very good progress, and there is engagement across teams which is very intense," Srikanth said of the deal, which would be one of the largest ever foreign investments in India.

The company had previously said it would sign a definitive agreement with Aramco by March 2020.

The weak performance at the petrochem and refining unit led to a 2.5 per cent drop in revenue from operations to 1.57 trillion rupees.

Still, Chief Financial Officer Alok Agarwal said 2020 would be a "better year from a global growth point of view", which should help boost margins in the refining and petrochemicals units.

Consolidated net profit rose 13.5 per cent to 116.40 billion rupees ($1.64 billion) in the three months to December&nbsp;31, above the previous quarter's record and also beating analysts' average forecast of 114.32 billion rupees, according to Refinitiv data.

Indian oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd posted another record quarterly profit on Friday, as double-digit growth at its consumer-facing businesses cushioned weakness in its energy divisions.

Indian oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd posted another record quarterly profit on Friday, as double-digit growth at its consumer-facing businesses cushioned weakness in its energy divisions. Revenue at its retail and telecoms units each jumped more than 25 per cent in the December quarter as the company, headed by Asia's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, invests heavily to bring them on par with its dominant petrochemicals and refining businesses. "We saw consistent same-store sales growth and record footfall across our stores," Ambani said in a statement, with the remarks coming when growth in Asia's third-largest economy has slowed to multi-year lows. The Mumbai-headquartered company has rapidly grown to become India's largest retailer with over 10,000 stores selling groceries, consumer electronics and apparel, while its telecom unit, Jio, has become the country's largest wireless operator in about three years since launch. Profit at Jio surged 62 per cent to 13.50 billion rupees, led by subscriber additions of 14.8 million during the reported quarter. Also read: Day after Supreme Court verdict, Vodafone stocks crash to record low Reliance, which runs the world's biggest oil refining complex, said gross refining margin - the profit earned on each barrel of crude oil processed - was $9.2 per barrel, slightly lower than the prior quarter but better than a year earlier. "The third-quarter results for our energy business reflect the weak global economic environment and volatility in energy markets," Ambani, the company's chairman, said. Meanwhile, the proposed purchase of 20 per cent in Reliance's oil-to-chemicals arm by Saudi Aramco will take a "few months" to be finalized, Joint Chief Financial Officer V Srikanth said at a press briefing, adding Reliance wouldn't comment on a specific timeframe for the deal to close. "We are making very good progress, and there is engagement across teams which is very intense," Srikanth said of the deal, which would be one of the largest ever foreign investments in India. The company had previously said it would sign a definitive agreement with Aramco by March 2020. The weak performance at the petrochem and refining unit led to a 2.5 per cent drop in revenue from operations to 1.57 trillion rupees. Still, Chief Financial Officer Alok Agarwal said 2020 would be a "better year from a global growth point of view", which should help boost margins in the refining and petrochemicals units. Consolidated net profit rose 13.5 per cent to 116.40 billion rupees ($1.64 billion) in the three months to December 31, above the previous quarter's record and also beating analysts' average forecast of 114.32 billion rupees, according to Refinitiv data.

Mukesh Ambani's Reliance posts record profit on consumer strength

Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) may have to disclose its assets before it can freeze plans to sell 20% stake in its refining and petrochemicals business to Saudi Aramco. #SaudiAramco #RelianceIndustries #MukeshAmbani #WION

Indian govt seeks to halt RIL's plan to sell stake to Aramco

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) board of directors has approved the formation of wholly-owned digital services subsidiary with a capital infusion of Rs 1.08 lakh crore.

The new company will become the conglomerate`s umbrella platform for all digital businesses including Jio.

The Rs 1.08 lakh crore investment will be in the form of a rights issue of optionally convertible preference shares (OCPS).

The wholly-owned subsidiary will also acquire RIL`s equity investment of Rs 65,000 crore in Jio so far, making it virtually net debt-free by March 31, 2020, with the exception of spectrum-related liabilities.

"This new company will be a truly transformational and disruptive digital services platform," said RIL Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani.

"It will bring together India`s number one connectivity platform, leading digital app ecosystem and the world`s best tech capabilities globally to create a truly digital society for each Indian."

Jio has been heralding the digital services revolution in India and will continue to do so in the years to come, said Ambani in a statement released late on Friday hinting at making way for the entry of a strategic investor.

"Given the reach and scale of our digital ecosystem, we have received strong interest from potential strategic partners. We will induct the right partners in our platform company, creating and unlocking meaningful value for RIL shareholders," he said.

Ambani said the group continues to focus on cutting-edge, technology-enabled digital platforms that enable and accelerate digital society with frictionless and seamless universal access and adoption with a focus on healthcare, education, agriculture, commerce, government-to-citizen services, gaming, manufacturing and many others.

These platforms are also backed by investment in emerging and next-generation technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, virtual, augmented and mixed reality, computer vision, high performance and edge computing, natural language processing and voice-enabled services.

RIL is India`s largest private sector company with a consolidated turnover of Rs 6.23 lakh crore, cash profit of Rs 64,478 crore and a net profit of Rs 39,588 crore for the year ended March 31.

Its activities span hydrocarbon exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, petrochemicals, retail and digital services.

Jio is a 4G-based telecom operator having than 35.5 crore subscribers. It is future-ready and can be easily upgraded to support even more data as technologies advance on to 5G, 6G and beyond.&nbsp;

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) board of directors has approved the formation of wholly-owned digital services subsidiary with a capital infusion of Rs 1.08 lakh crore.

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) board of directors has approved the formation of wholly-owned digital services subsidiary with a capital infusion of Rs 1.08 lakh crore. The new company will become the conglomerate`s umbrella platform for all digital businesses including Jio. The Rs 1.08 lakh crore investment will be in the form of a rights issue of optionally convertible preference shares (OCPS). The wholly-owned subsidiary will also acquire RIL`s equity investment of Rs 65,000 crore in Jio so far, making it virtually net debt-free by March 31, 2020, with the exception of spectrum-related liabilities. "This new company will be a truly transformational and disruptive digital services platform," said RIL Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani. "It will bring together India`s number one connectivity platform, leading digital app ecosystem and the world`s best tech capabilities globally to create a truly digital society for each Indian." Jio has been heralding the digital services revolution in India and will continue to do so in the years to come, said Ambani in a statement released late on Friday hinting at making way for the entry of a strategic investor. "Given the reach and scale of our digital ecosystem, we have received strong interest from potential strategic partners. We will induct the right partners in our platform company, creating and unlocking meaningful value for RIL shareholders," he said. Ambani said the group continues to focus on cutting-edge, technology-enabled digital platforms that enable and accelerate digital society with frictionless and seamless universal access and adoption with a focus on healthcare, education, agriculture, commerce, government-to-citizen services, gaming, manufacturing and many others. These platforms are also backed by investment in emerging and next-generation technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, virtual, augmented and mixed reality, computer vision, high performance and edge computing, natural language processing and voice-enabled services. RIL is India`s largest private sector company with a consolidated turnover of Rs 6.23 lakh crore, cash profit of Rs 64,478 crore and a net profit of Rs 39,588 crore for the year ended March 31. Its activities span hydrocarbon exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, petrochemicals, retail and digital services. Jio is a 4G-based telecom operator having than 35.5 crore subscribers. It is future-ready and can be easily upgraded to support even more data as technologies advance on to 5G, 6G and beyond.

Reliance to invest Rs 1.08 lakh crore in new digital services subsidiary

Shares rose for a fourth session to record highs on Tuesday, led by heavyweights including Reliance Industries Ltd, as expectations of a stable government ran high after exit polls on Sunday projected Prime Minister Narendra Modi winning a second term.

Expert's view: Sensex crosses 39,500 mark for first time