22 hours ago
Indian equities extended Thursday's losses, starting the May F&O series on a weak note amid rising geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan. The benchmark Nifty 50 index has fallen below its 200-day moving average (200-DMA), signaling a potential re-entry into a bearish trend.
Markets closed on a weak note despite opening higher, as investor sentiment was dampened by ongoing uncertainty following terror attacks in Kashmir.
The Nifty tested its crucial support zone of 23,800–23,870 during the day and recovered more than 300 points from the day’s low of 23,847. However, towards the end, another round of selling took the index 164 points lower from the intraday swing high. The index ultimately slipped 207 points to close at 24,039.
For the week, the market posted gains of nearly 1%, marking its second straight weekly advance. However, the decline seen on Thursday and Friday trimmed the overall weekly gains.
Nearly 30 out of 50 Nifty stocks delivered positive returns this week.
The broader markets underperformed, with the Midcap index sliding nearly 3%.
The resultant sell-off has led to a wipe out of ₹9 lakh crore in the combined market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies on Friday.
IT index bucked the trend by rising 0.72%, while all other sectors registered a fall. Sectoral indices like media, realty, pharma and PSU banks were the major losers.
Companies reacted sharply to earnings, Shriram Finance was the top Nifty loser, falling 6% on weak Q4 results.
India's largest passenger car manufacturer Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. reported A Miss On Margin As Expenses Increased. EBITDA declined 9% from the year-ago period to ₹4,264.5 crore, while margin stood at 10.5% from 12.3% last year. Both EBITDA and margins were below Street estimates. The Stock fell Nearly 2%.
Among the key triggers to watch for the May series include the ongoing earnings season for the March quarter, which can provide a direction to the markets. The other major trigger is the FOMC policy decision on May 7, which can also spark a reaction from US President Donald Trump.
Going ahead, market attention will shift to earnings reports from TVS Motor Company, UltraTech Cement, Adani Green Energy, Adani Total Gas, IDBI Bank, IRFC, Kfin Technologies, KPIT Technologies, PNB Housing Finance, and UCO Bank.
Additionally, stocks like Reliance Industries, RBL Bank, DCB Bank, Indraprastha Gas, among others will also be in the spotlight tomorrow, as these companies reported their Q4 numbers after market hours on Friday.
Monday's trading session will also see the opening of the ₹2,981 crore IPO of Ather Energy. The issue will be available for public bidding from April 28 to April 30. This will be the first mainboard IPO to hit the markets in over two months.
Meanwhile, both foreign investors and domestic institutional investors remained net buyers in the cash market on Friday.
According to Vinay Rajani of HDFC Securities, after rising more than 2,600 points from the recent swing low of 21,743, the Nifty seems to have registered running correction. However, the positional trend is still bullish as Nifty is placed above 20,50, 100 and 200 DMA. A breach of today’s low of 23,847 in subsequent sessions could lead to a further fall towards the next support of 23,500. On the upside, 24,150 and 24,365 could offer resistance in the Nifty.
LKP Securities' Rupak De said that investor sentiment remains weak, with a clear risk-off approach ahead of the weekend, amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan. "In the short term, sentiment is likely to continue driving the market trend, with the possibility of the index heading lower. Support on the lower end, is placed at 23800/23515."
Om Mehra of SAMCO Securities said the Nifty will consolidate for some time before making its next decisive move.
The Nifty Bank, meanwhile, settled at 54,664.05, ending the session with a loss of 0.97%. The index posted a weekly gain of 0.69%.
"The support remains at 54,200, followed by the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement at 53,500. The resistance stands at 55,400. The index may remain in a broader range before any directional move," Mehra said.
