Indian equities closed modestly higher on Friday after short covering in a few heavyweight stocks helped offset cautious sentiment shaped by mixed global cues and uneven corporate earnings.

Investors continued to weigh the longer-term positives from a growth-focused Union Budget and recent trade agreements with the E.U. and the U.S. against persistent foreign outflows.

The Reserve Bank of India's decision to keep policy rates unchanged offered little fresh direction to the market.

The BSE Sensex rose 0.3%, or 266.47 points, to close at 83,580.40, while the NSE Nifty 50 added 0.2%, or 50.90 points, to end at 25,693.70.

ITC (NSE:ITC, BOM:500875) climbed about 5% to top the gainers, followed by Kotak Mahindra Bank (NSE:KOTAKBANK, BOM:500247) and Hindustan Unilever (NSE:HINDUNILVR, BOM:500696).

HDFC Life Insurance (NSE:HDFCLIFE, BOM:540777), Tata Consultancy Services (NSE:TCS, BOM:532540) and Tech Mahindra (NSE:TECHM, BOM:532755) weighed on the benchmarks.

On the macroeconomic front, the Reserve Bank of India left the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and retained a neutral policy stance. The central bank acknowledged that global risks have picked up since its previous review, but said India's growth outlook continues to be supported by recent trade deals with the E.U. and the U.S.

In corporte updates, Cantabil Retail India (NSE:CANTABIL, BOM:533267) reported a net profit of 450.9 million rupees for the fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31, 2025, up from 343.9 million rupees a year earlier, according to a filing.

Eternal (NSE:ETERNAL, BOM:543320) said its Netherlands-based step-down subsidiary, Zomato Netherlands, was dissolved with effect from Jan. 27, with confirmation received on Feb. 5.