Indian benchmark indices ended a volatile session marginally lower on Friday as investors digested the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision and continued foreign institutional investor (FII) selling, while keeping a close watch on global developments, according to an ET report.
The RBI kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and maintained its neutral policy stance. The central bank also raised its inflation forecast and lowered GDP growth projections, keeping market sentiment cautious through the trading session.
According to Ajit Mishra, SVP-Research at Religare Broking, the broader market trend remains weak despite support from select heavyweight stocks.
"While the broader index trend remains weak, mixed performance among heavyweight stocks is limiting the pace of decline. In this backdrop, we maintain a cautious stance and prefer a sell-on-rise approach until the Nifty decisively reclaims the 23,700 level. At the same time, traders should focus on stock-specific opportunities across sectors and maintain balanced positions with disciplined overnight risk management," Mishra said.
Global cues remain critical
Global markets will remain a key factor for Dalal Street after US equities posted their sharpest decline in months on Friday.
The S&P 500 fell 2.6%, marking its biggest one-day drop since October and ending a 10-week winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.4%, while the Nasdaq Composite slumped 4.2% as technology stocks came under heavy selling pressure.
The sell-off followed a stronger-than-expected US jobs report, which strengthened expectations that the Federal Reserve may need to keep interest rates higher for longer and could even consider further tightening.
European markets also ended lower for the week as investors remained concerned about developments in West Asia and their impact on energy prices and inflation.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.3% on Friday and declined 0.5% for the week. Market sentiment remained cautious amid uncertainty surrounding US-Iran tensions and the fragile Israel-Lebanon ceasefire.
Nifty seen consolidating
From a technical perspective, analysts expect the benchmark index to remain range-bound in the near term.
According to market experts, the Nifty is likely to consolidate in the 23,000-23,550 zone during the coming week.
A move above Tuesday's high of 23,556 could open the door for an advance towards the 23,750-23,800 resistance zone.
Stocks in focus
Among the most active stocks on the BSE in value terms were BSE, ZEE Entertainment, Reliance Industries, State Bank of India, Adani Enterprises, HDFC Bank and Himadri Speciality.
In terms of trading volumes, Vodafone Idea, Ola Electric, ZEE Entertainment, YES Bank, JP Power and Suzlon Energy remained the most actively traded counters.
Stocks that attracted strong buying interest included ZEE Entertainment, Adani Green Energy, Himadri Speciality, Jyoti CNC, Schneider Electric, Kirloskar Brothers and Saregama India.
Among stocks that touched their 52-week highs were Himadri Speciality, ACME Solar, Adani Enterprises, Sai Life Sciences, Laurus Labs and Federal Bank.
On the other hand, Wockhardt, Hindustan Zinc, Netweb Technologies, HFCL, Nalco, Tejas Networks and BSE witnessed significant selling pressure.
Market breadth mixed
Market breadth remained slightly negative despite pockets of buying interest.
Of the 4,399 stocks traded on the BSE on Friday, 1,993 advanced, 2,212 declined and 194 remained unchanged.
With RBI policy signals, FII activity, global equity trends, crude oil prices and geopolitical developments continuing to influence sentiment, investors are expected to remain focused on both domestic and international triggers in the week ahead.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
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