Indian equity benchmarks fell sharply on Tuesday, dragged by index heavyweight Reliance Industries, HDFC twins (HDFC and HDFC Bank) and ICICI Bank. At closing, the 30-pack Sensex was down 631 points or 1.04 per cent at 60,115. The NSE benchmark lost 187 points or 1.03 per cent to settle at 17,914. On the sectoral front, banks, financials and technology took a sharp beating today. Investors would also keep a close eye on inflation data at home and in the US, both scheduled to be released on Thursday, to determine interest rate expectations. “Sentiments in the domestic market were dampened by the muted start to the IT earnings season, along with their cautious commentary on the demand environment. Investors are anticipating the US Federal Reserve Chair’s speech later in the day, along with key inflation numbers on Thursday, to gain clarity on the Fed’s future plans,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
“Following a day of pause, Nifty dropped sharply, falling below the previous session’s low. A bearish engulfing pattern on the daily chart points towards a further correction. The index, however, has been hovering within the bands of 17,750 and 18,250. A decisive breakout on either side may trigger a strong directional move,” said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
“Nifty Bank witnessed selling pressure throughout the trading session and ended near the day’s low level. The index faces stiff resistance on the upside at the 43,000 level, where the highest open interest is built up on the call side. The downside is supported at 42,000, and if it is breached, further selling pressure will be directed toward the 41,500-41,400 zone,” said Kunal Shah, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
“The highest call OI is at 18,100, followed by 18,200 strike, while on the put side, highest OI is at 17,700 strike. We advise investors to remain cognizant of prevailing risks related to the macroeconomic environment. Many of the quality stocks have corrected meaningfully in the last couple of weeks, and could give healthy returns in the short term,” said Ameya Ranadive, Equity Research Analyst, Choice Broking.
“Nifty Bank opened positive but weakened right from the initial tick and nosedived to 41,835 zones. It remained under pressure and broke its immediate support zones. It formed a Bearish Belt Hold sort of candle on daily scale and closed with losses of around 570 points. Now till it holds below 42222 zones weakness could be seen towards 41,750 and 41,500 zones, whereas hurdles are placed at 42,222 and 42,500 zones,” said Chandan Taparia of Motilal Oswal Securities.
“Nifty future closed negative with losses of 1.02 per cent at 17,988 levels. Positive setup in Tata Motors, Hindustan Copper, L&T Finance Holdings, Zydus Life, Samvardhana Motherson International, IndusInd Bank, M&M, Hindalco, MFSL, Lupin, Syngene, Tata Comm, Bosch, Tata Steel, IGL, HUL and Divi’s Labs, while weakness in Adani Ent, CUB, Titan, ABFRL, ZEEL, Eicher Motor, LIC Housing Finance, Grasim, Bajaj Auto and Hero MotoCorp,” Taparia said.
European stock indices such as the German DAX, Euro Stoxx 50, France’s CAC and Spain’s IBEX 35 seen trading lower. Further, US stock futures indicated a gap-down start for Wall Street.
Yes Bank, Vodafone Idea, PNB, Suzlon, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Zomato, Indian Overseas Bank, South Indian Bank and IDBI Bank were the most active stocks on NSE, in terms of volume.
Oil prices were up today, extending gains from the previous trading session. Higher oil prices hurt oil-importing countries like India, where crude constitutes the bulk of the country’s import bill.
101 stocks touched their respective 52-week high today on BSE, while 34 hit their one-year lows. BSE 500 stocks such as CG Power and Industrial Solutions, Jindal Steel & Power, Mahindra CIE Automotive and Zydus Lifesciences hit their one-year high levels today, while Atul, Galaxy Surfactants, Gland Pharma, Vodafone Idea and Thyrocare Technologies were among those which touched their 52-week lows.
Out of 3,654 stocks, 2,189 stocks declined while 1,329 stocks advanced. 136 stocks remained unchanged today.