Mumbai, Feb. 7 -- The key equity indices ended with limited cuts on Friday, declining for the third day in a row as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) slashed interest rates for the first time in nearly five years, as was widely expected, to revive economic growth. The Nifty closed below the 23,600 level. Metal, consumer durables, and auto shares advanced while PSU Bank, FMCG, and oil & gas shares declined.

As per provisional closing, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 197.97 points or 0.25% to 77,860.19. The Nifty 50 index lost 43.40 points or 0.18% to 23,559.95.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.13% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.68%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,520 shares ros...