On Monday, March 18, domestic equity benchmarks Nifty 50 and Sensex ended the day with modest gains, driven by a few heavyweights in the metal and auto industries, such as Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, JSW Steel, and Tata Motors.
According to Reuters, “China’s industrial output grew 7 per cent year-on-year in the January-February period, while retail sales rose 5.5 per cent year-on-year. But real estate remained a worry as property investment fell 9 per cent on the year”.
The Nifty 50 reached its intraday high and low of 22,123.70 and 21,916.55, respectively, and opened at 21,990.10 compared to the previous close of 22,023.35. At 22,055.70, the index ultimately closed 32 points, or 0.15 percent, higher.
In contrast to the previous closing of 72,643.43, the Sensex began at 72,587.30. It reached its intraday high at 72,985.89 and low at 72,314.16, respectively. At 72,748.42, the 30-share pack closed 105 points, or 0.14 percent, higher.
The main drivers of the Sensex’s increase were shares of Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Reliance Industries. Nonetheless, the major drags on the index at the finish were shares of HDFC Bank, TCS, and Infosys.
The benchmarks were outperformed by the mid- and small-cap indices. While the Smallcap index finished 0.07 percent lower, the BSE Midcap index finished 0.04 percent higher.
Emerging Nifty 50 gainers
The top gainers in the Nifty 50 index at closing were shares of Tata Steel (up 5.01%), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 3.31%), and JSW Steel (up 2.81%).
Emerging Nifty 50 losers
UPL (down 2%), Infosys (down 1.97%), and Tata Consumer Products (down 1.95%) were the top losers in the Nifty 50 pack at the close.
Sectoral indices data
The largest gainer among sectoral indices was Nifty Metal, which gained 2.33 percent. Nifty Ayto, which gained 1.29 percent, Realty, which gained 1.22 percent, and Media, which gained 1.09 percent, followed.
From the analyst
“The Indian market followed the positive Asian peers with a mixed bias. Domestic issues, like mutual fund stress tests, hardly brought any negative views, but premium valuation remains as a concern. Midcap and small caps are attempting to scroll up, however, consolidation persists. Both DII and FII inflows are strong for large caps, hence sustaining their outperformance,” stated Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
“Policy actions, this week, from global central banks, the US Fed, Bank of Japan, and Bank of England will dictate the market direction. Indication by the Fed that rate cut may be probably in the latter half of 2024 should bring a mixed sentiment in the short term,” continued Nair.
Technical perspective
“Nifty managed to hold on to the support zone of 21,900 – 21,850 where support in the form of the 40-day average and the previous swing low is placed. It is still trading in the range of 21,900 – 22,200 since the last three trading sessions and a decisive breach shall lead to trending moves in that direction,” stated Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.
“Until the support zone is held, we can expect the positive momentum to resume. In terms of levels, 22,215 – 22,250 is the immediate hurdle zone while 21,900 – 21,860 is the crucial support,” Gedia added.
