Indian Stock Markets Close with Minor Gains Amid Cautious Trading
Market Overview
Mumbai, July 16: The Indian stock market concluded Wednesday's trading session with slight gains following a day of fluctuating prices. Investors exhibited caution due to ongoing corporate earnings reports and uncertainties surrounding a potential trade agreement between India and the US, which tempered market enthusiasm.
The Sensex managed to recover from earlier declines, finishing at 82,634.48, marking an increase of 63.57 points or 0.08 percent. Similarly, the broader Nifty index closed nearly unchanged at 25,212.05, up by just 16.25 points or 0.06 percent.
According to Rupak De from LKP Securities, the Nifty is encountering resistance at the significant level of 25,260, which corresponds to the 38.20 percent Fibonacci retracement of its recent drop from 25,669, indicating a lack of clear direction among investors at these elevated levels.
He further noted that the index has been maintaining its position above the 50-day moving average (50DMA) on the daily chart, suggesting a positive trend in the short term.
Among the 30 stocks on the Sensex, the biggest losers included Eicher Motors, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, and Bajaj Finance, which saw declines of up to 1.6 percent.
Conversely, Mahindra and Mahindra, Tech Mahindra, State Bank of India, Infosys, and Adani Ports emerged as the top gainers.
In the broader market, the NSE Midcap 100 index remained stable with a slight upward bias, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 recorded a minimal gain of 0.03 percent.
Sector-wise, the Nifty PSU Bank index was the standout performer, rising by 1.81 percent, with stocks like Punjab National Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank, Canara Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, SBI, Indian Bank, and Union Bank of India all gaining over 1 percent.
Other sectors, including IT, automotive, banking, energy, FMCG, real estate, oil and gas, and consumer durables, also finished in positive territory.
However, sectors such as financial services, metals, and pharmaceuticals closed lower.
Meanwhile, the India VIX, which gauges market volatility, fell by 2.09 percent to settle at 11.24.
The Indian Rupee experienced significant fluctuations, initially depreciating against a strong US dollar before recovering mid-session due to increased dollar supply.
This movement followed a three-day consolidation period for the USD-INR pair, which fluctuated between 85.70 and 86.05.
Dilip Parmar from HDFC Securities noted that the sentiment remains strongly favorable for the dollar, influenced by expectations of a hawkish stance from the Federal Reserve following US inflation data and ongoing uncertainties regarding India-US trade negotiations.
He anticipates that the spot USDINR will consolidate within the range of 85.50 to 86.30 in the near term.