Mumbai, Aug 8 (PTI) Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty declined in early trade on Friday amid non-stop foreign fund outflows and tariff-related jitters.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 242.24 points to 80,381.02 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 54.85 points to 24,541.30.

From the Sensex firms, Bharti Airtel, Infosys, Bharat Electronics, Eternal, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.

However, Titan, Bajaj Finance, NTPC and Bajaj Finserv were among the gainers.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,997.19 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DII), however, bought stocks worth Rs 10,864.04 crore in the previous trade.

"The market continues to be technically and fundamentally weak. From the fundamental perspective, there are no indications yet of a sharp uptick in earnings for FY26. These weak indicators, along with the relatively high valuations in India, are triggering sustained selling by the FIIs.

"Yesterday’s sharp 250 point recovery from the low level in Nifty was caused by short covering triggered by the strong buying by DIIs of Rs 10,864 crore. In the present context of negative sentiments in the market caused by the tariff skirmishes between India and the US, FIIs are likely to continue selling in the cash market. The only saving grace is the sustained DII buying, which remains strong," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

The initial 25 per cent tariffs announced by the US on Indian imports came into effect Thursday.

In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai's SSE Composite index quoted in positive territory, while South Korea's Kospi and Hong Kong's Hang Seng traded lower.

The US markets ended on a mixed note on Thursday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.69 per cent to USD 66.42 a barrel.

On Thursday, the Sensex edged higher by 79.27 points or 0.10 per cent to settle at 80,623.26. The Nifty went up by 21.95 points or 0.09 per cent to 24,596.15. PTI SUM SUM DR DR

US tariffs on Indian imports spark foreign investor sell offs, driving early equity declines despite domestic institutional support. Effective imposition of US tariffs on Indian imports coincided with substantial net selling by Foreign Institutional Investors and strong buying by Domestic Institutional Investors, exerting downward pressure on benchmark indices in early trade. Market analysts link sustained FII liquidation to elevated valuations and weak near term earnings prospects, while DIIs have provided technical support through large purchases; tariff related jitters and trade policy tensions are identified as key drivers of ongoing volatility and capital flow shifts.