The Indian stock market closed on a muted note, with benchmark index Sensex closing almost unchanged on expiry day and Nifty ending below 24,100 as investors digested the rising uncertainties around the Iran-US war.
Sensex gained a mere 1 point to end at around 77,187, and Nifty 50 dropped around 6 points to close at nearly 24,073 on Thursday. Broader markets slipped into the red, with Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices closing up to 0.4% lower.
Eternal was the top loser on Sensex, falling more than 3%. Bajaj Finserv, Bharat Electronics (BEL) and HDFC Bank shares declined nearly 1% each. HCL Technologies, IndiGo and Bajaj Finance shares gained nearly 2% each.
The muted market sentiment came even as volatility measure India VIX dropped nearly 3% to close at 12.88. Sectorally, Nifty Realty and Nifty Financial Services dropped nearly 1% each to lead losses, with Nifty Consumer Durables surged 1.5%. The overall market breadth however turned bearish, with NSE seeing 1,776 declines and 1,543 advances, while 112 remained unchanged.
What lies ahead?
With many companies reporting their Q1 results in the coming days, the market is likely to respond to the results, said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments.
“Financials-both banks and NBFCs- are likely to report a good set of numbers aided by robust credit growth now running at 18%. Automobiles is a sector to watch closely since the growth numbers for Q1 would be impressive and the sector continues to exhibit momentum, aided by GST cuts and easy availability of finance. Most segments of the sector -cars, SUVs, two-wheelers, commercial vehicles, exports- are doing well. Digital platform companies, too, will be reporting good growth numbers. Announcement of bonus issue by Paytm in the July 20th board meeting is an important news,” according to the analyst.
The Nifty index continues to trade within a narrow range, reflecting a consolidation phase with a neutral undertone, said Vatsal Bhuva, Technical Analyst at LKP Securities. The analyst noted that the index technically is expected to find strong support in the 23,950–24,000 zone, while the 24,250–24,300 region is likely to act as an immediate resistance, with a broader hurdle placed near 24,500.
“Option chain data also indicates the highest put writing at the 24,000 strike, reinforcing it as a key support level. Considering the current technical setup, a buy-on-dips near support and sell-on-rise near resistance strategy remains appropriate,” Bhuva further said.
