7 hours ago
Its been nearly a week since the Nifty is stuck in this 300-point range between its 50 and 100-Day Moving Average. It does not come as a surprise either, as barring that 50 basis points CRR cut on Friday, most of the commentary from the Reserve Bank of India erred on the side of caution. Therefore, Thursday's CPI inflation print becomes crucial for the markets to react to.
The actual reaction for the CPI print will only be seen on Friday as the numbers will be released after market hours on Thursday. The CPI print in the US came in exactly in line with expectatins at 2.7%, and that has taken the probability for a Fed rate cut by 25 basis points next week to 98%.
Most of the price action this week has happened on thin volumes, a trend that will most likely continue for the rest of the month, as well as for a better part of the start of January 2025 as well. The Nifty traded in another 110-point band on Wednesday, struggling to cross the mark of 24,700 yet again.
The broader markets continued to do well with the Nifty Smallcap index hitting a record high in early trading on Wednesday. The index has rebounded 13% from the November lows and has more than 70 stocks with returns of over 10% during this period. You can take a look at the list of the top gainers during this period right here.
Railway stocks did well on Thursday and most of them have seen a rebound between 20% to 30% from their lows of November. However, most of these names, from IRFC to IRCON to RVNL are still well below their peak levels hit in the month of July and August this year.
Thursday will also be the weekly options expiry of the Nifty 50 options contracts, which may just provide the necessary trigger for the Nifty to move on either side of the range.
After a few sessions of being net buyers in the cash market, foreign institutions returned to being net sellers on Wednesday, while domestic institutions were net buyers.
Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities said that if the Nifty fails to break above the upper band of the 24,700 - 24,800 range, then it may see a minor dip before a rebound takes place. Immediate support now is at 24,500.
The current market texture remains non-directional, according to Shrikant Chouhan of HDFC Securities, indicating indecisiveness between the bulls and bears. In case the market breaks above the 24,700 mark, it can head to levels of 24,825 on the upside, but a decline below 24,500 could intensify the selling pressure to 24,350 levels.
The Nifty Bank gave up most of the gains it had during Tuesday's outperformance. The index tested levels of 53,650 on the upside but could not sustain above those levels. Despite a 200-point loss, the index continued to trade in a very narrow band of 350 points, similar to the Nifty.
Om Mehra of SAMCO Securities said that the Nifty Bank showed resilience despite the sideways movement by closing above the critical support of 53,300. However, it needs a decisive close above Wednesday's high of 53,650 to revive the upward momentum and pave the way for further gains.
The Nifty Bank has formed a small red candle on the daily chart and continues to face resistance near 53,900 - 54,000 levels. On the downside, there is major support for the index at 52,500 and till that holds, Hrishikesh Yedve of Asit C Mehta Investment Interrmediates advises to keep buying the dips.
What Are The F&O Cues Indicating?
Fresh long positions were seen in these stocks on Wednesday, meaning an increase in both price and Open Interest:
| Stock | Price Change | OI Change |
| KEI Industries | 0.51% | 55.97% |
| JK Cement | 2.18% | 28.74% |
| CAMS | 0.28% | 19.44% |
| Max Healthcare | 1.44% | 14.71% |
| Jio Financial Services | 2.45% | 14.14% |
Fresh short positions were seen in these stocks on Wednesday, meaning a decline in price but an increase in Open Interest:
| Stock | Price Change | OI Change |
| Avenue Supermarts | -2.33% | 23.49% |
| Delhivery | -0.53% | 16.20% |
| APL Apollo Tubes | -1.51% | 16.21% |
| HFCL | -0.45% | 10.05% |
| Zomato | -1.23% | 7.82% |
Short covering was seen in these stocks on Wednesday, meaning an increase in price but a decline in Open Interest:
| Stock | Price Change | OI Change |
| Syngene | 2.87% | -12.47% |
| Cyient | 0.50% | -6.12% |
| HPCL | 0.97% | -5.25% |
| Trent | 2.48% | -3.92% |
| Cummins India | 2.03% | -3.88% |
These are the stocks to watch out for ahead of Thursday's trading session:
Nuvama Wealth: Edelweiss Finance, ECap Equities likely to sell 7.1% stake via block deals. Floor price of ₹6,800 per share is a 6.8% discount to Wednesday's closing. Clean out trade valued at ₹1,734 crore.
Gland Pharma: Gets USFDA approval for Phytonadione injectable emulsion used in treating coagulation disorders caused by deficiency of Vitamin K.
Grasim: Board approves raising up to ₹2,000 crore via NCDs.
Shriram Finance: Completes sale of entire 84.4% stake in arm Shriram Housing Finance to Warburg Pincus for ₹3,929 crore.
Godawari Power: Enters into an agreement with GAIL for the supply of RLNG gas.
Greaves Cotton: Approves OFS component of arm Greaves Electric Mobility Ltd. for its proposed IPO. Quantum and size not determined yet.
ACME Solar Holdings: Bags 250 MW firm and dispatchable renewable energy (FDRE) project from NHPC.
Varroc Engineering: Singapore tribunal passes order in matter of Beste Motors Co. by asking it to transfer 50% stake in Varroc TYC Corp to Beste Motors for RMB 310.5 million.
Samman Capital: Board approves fund raising of up to ₹2,500 crore through a QIP.
Reliance Power: Arm wins 930 MW Solar Energy Contract with battery energy storage system project from Solar Energy Corporation of India.
Pilani Investment: Submits application with the RBI for conversion of company from an NBFC to a core investment company.
Ami Organics: Approves enhancement in capex of ₹177 crore for its brownfield project of electrolytes additives products.
PC Jewellers: To issue 5.2 crore equity shares to a consortium of lenders at an issue price of ₹292 per share.
