The stock markets closed in the red on March 21, first day of trading in the new week starting today. On the back of global markets and SGX Nifty, domestic benchmark index Nifty opened on a gap up note but showed profitbooking from the top and closed the session on a negative note.
Sensex fell 571.44 points or 0.99 percent at 57,292.49. The broader Nifty50 was down 69.40 points or 0.98 percent at 17,117.60. About 1,516 shares have advanced, 1,919 shares declined, and 140 shares are unchanged.
Bank Nifty ended the day 410.05 points or 1.13 percent lower at 36018.50. Indian VIX also ended at 24.60 with a gain of 8.71 percent.
Forty one stocks out of Nifty 50, ended in red. Sectorally, auto, banks, realty and power shed over 1 percent each. Buying was seen in metals. Midcap index shed half a percent while the smallcap index added over 0.5 percent.
Ruchi Soya fell 17 percent in Monday’s trade as the FPO price band set at Rs 615-650. Coal India and Hindalco were top gainers in Nifty 50 while Britannia and Tata Consumer were top losers.
Stocks like Coal India, Hindalco, UPL, ONGC were the top gainers while Britannia, Grasim, Powergrid, and Tata Consumer were the prime laggards.
Palak Kothari, Research Associate, Choice Broking said, On the technical front, the Index has formed a bearish candle which suggests weakness in the counter for the next trading session. On an hourly chart, the index has been trading in rising wedge formation and taking support from the lower band of formation which indicates sustaining above the same can show upside. Moreover, the benchmark index has given closing below 21-DMA which adds weakness to the price. Momentum indicator Stochastic is trading with a negative crossover which points out the southward journey in the counter.
At present, the index has support at 17,000 levels while resistance comes at 17,380 levels, crossing above the same can show 17,450-17,500 levels. On the other hand, Bank nifty has support at 35,600 levels while resistance at 36,800 levels.
''With no significant improvement in the tensions between Russia and Ukraine and uncertainty in the Gulf region, crude prices surged leading to a sell-off in the domestic market after the recent rally. FII's coming back to buying mode is a positive for domestic equities but a rise in bulk diesel prices and inflationary pressure are bending the domestic market,'' said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services to PTI.
On Thursday, the BSE benchmark rallied 1,047.28 points or 1.84 percent to finish at 57,863.93. Likewise, Nifty surged 311.70 points or 1.84 percent to 17,287.05.
Equity markets were closed on Friday on account of Holi.
Positive momentum likely in IT sector in short-term
Mohit Nigam, Head - PMS, Hem Securities, said, "We may see some positive momentum in the IT sector in the short-term after strong revenue growth and upward revision in revenue guidance of Accenture. Some margin pressure due to wage inflation and elevated attrition can be seen in Indian IT companies too."
After a strong uptrend start, the benchmark indices witnessed profit booking as traders started booking profit as benchmark indices approached key resistance level, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd. Profit booking was seen in FMCG and infra stocks whereas despite weak market conditions buying interest continued in metal stocks. Technically, Nifty faced resistance near 50-days SMA and reversed sharply. It also formed bearish candle on daily charts which supports further weakness. However, the medium-term texture of the market is still in to the positive side. We are of the view that, 50-days SMA or 17250 on the Nifty would act as an immediate hurdle for the bulls. Below which the correction wave is likely to continue till 17,000-16,975. Fresh uptrend possible only after 17,250 breakout. Above which the chances of hitting 17,350-17,400 would turn bright. Contra traders can take a long bet near 16,975 with 16,950 support stop loss.
Profit-booking at higher level was witnessed today as international crude prices spiked to $108, said Prashanth Tapse, Vice President (Research), Mehta Equities. With no significant progress in Russia–Ukraine peace talks, fears were raised on further sanctions and prolonged disruption to oil and metals supply. We can primarily blame the sluggishness at Dalal Street to WTI Oil prices which again spiked to $108 a barrel, Tapse said.
The next big move on the market depends Fed's meeting. Fed Chair Powell will make an appearance today, with traders looking for any clues on whether the central bank will deliver a 50 bps rate hike in May 2022 and what plans it might have for running down its $8.9 trillion balance sheet. Technically, the make-or-break Nifty’s support is seen only at 16,697-mark.
Rupee slumps
The rupee slumped 31 paise to close at 76.15 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday as rising crude oil prices and a lacklustre trend in domestic equities weighed on investor sentiment. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 76.08 against the American currency, then lost further ground to settle at 76.15, down 31 paise from the previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee spurted by 37 paise to close at 75.84 against the US dollar.
Asian markets mixed
In Asia, where Japanese markets were shut for a public holiday, the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.7 percent with investors awaiting further details of possible stimulus from Beijing.
Shanghai ended marginally higher while Hong Kong went lower. Tokyo was closed for a holiday.
Stock exchanges in the US closed with significant gains on Friday.
Global markets ease as Ukraine fighting rages on
Stock markets around the world slipped on Monday as fighting in Ukraine raged on with no sign of a ceasefire even as diplomatic efforts continued, while Brent crude prices climbed above $110 a barrel as supplies remained tight, Reuters said. Turkey's foreign minister said on Sunday that Russia and Ukraine were nearing agreement on "critical" issues and he was hopeful for a ceasefire if the two sides did not backtrack from progress achieved so far.
The MSCI world equity index was down 0.05 percent by 0834 GMT. European shares were choppy with the pan-regional STOXX 600 benchmark last up 0.1 percent. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were down 0.1 percent and 0.3 percent respectively.
Crude prices climbs
Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 3.53 percent to $111.5 per barrel.
Foreign institutional investors were net buyers as they bought shares worth Rs 2,800.14 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
(With inputs from Reuters)
