Market Rebounds To Conclude Flat; All Eyes On Fed Meet

The Indian stock market recovered in the last hours after a dip in Wednesday's trading session. The gains in Auto and Energy lifted the market, while Pharma and IT kept investors on their toes. Now, investors are eyeing the scheduled US Fed Meeting to ascertain its stance on rate cuts. 

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty 50 index closed flat at 21,839, whereas the S&P Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex settled 80 points to 72,091 levels with 0.11 per cent marginal gain on the closing bell. 

In the Nifty50 index, Eicher Motors topped with 4.22 per cent gain after the global brokerage firm, USD upgraded its rating to ‘buy’ on new launches and limited competition from peers. Maruti Suzuki hit record high with almost 3 per cent gain, brokerage firm CLSA cited that the automaker will sustain its top position in the CNG PV segment with a 72 per cent market share. 

Power Grid and Nestle also trade more than 2 per cent higher followed by significant gains in state-run ONGC, SBI and BPCL. Overall, a tug of war was witnessed among the index peers as 26 advanced. 

In the laggard segment, 24 stocks remained in the losing league. Tata conglomerate stocks continued to decline, Tata Steel, Tata Consumer and Tata Motors fell around 2 per cent. Whereas, Axis Bank and Cipla lost 1.53 per cent and 1.27 per cent respectively. 

Analyst Note
“Technical analysis suggests that the Nifty has broken down the daily trend line, hinting at a potential reversal of the uptrend. Furthermore, it has dipped below the critical short-term moving average, signalling weakening momentum. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has also displayed a bearish crossover, indicating mounting selling pressure. Key levels to monitor include resistance at 22,000 and support at 21,700. A breach below 21,700 could trigger further correction towards the 21,600 levels,” said Mandar Bhojane, Research Analyst, Choice Broking. 

Examination of the Open Interest (OI) data reveals the highest OI on the call side at the 22,000 strike price, followed by the 22,300 strike price. On the put side, the highest OI was observed at the 21,500 strike price, added Bhojane. 

Sectoral Movement
In terms of sectoral performance, as the US Fed Meet nervousness lingered, Nifty IT continued to remain muted. Pharma, Banks and Metal also attempted to drag the market, whereas Auto, Realty and FMCG remained positive. The more domestically focussed indices, mid-cap and small-cap remained flat. 

Stock Specific
Aster DM Healthcare gained 2.23 per cent to Rs 437 after the hospital chain declared the demerger of its India and Gulf Cooperation business and said investments by Fajr Capital-led consortium are near completion.  

IREDA slumped nearly 3 per cent to Rs 125 after the NSE informed its decision to revoke company’s inclusion in some Nifty indices due to a breach in the market regulator’s portfolio concentration norms for ETFs and index funds.