The benchmark equity indices closed Friday’s trading session in negative territory. The NSE Nifty 50 ended down by 7.30 points or 0.04% to settle at 19,790.55, while the BSE Sensex ended down by 47.77 points or 0.07% to 65,970.04. Bank Nifty index gained over 191.60 points or 0.44% to settle at 43,769.10.
The broader indices ended largely mixed, with gain led by Smallcap and Midcap stocks. Healthcare and Banking stocks gained among the other sectoral indices while IT and FMCG stocks shed.
“Markets consolidated in a range for yet another session and ended unchanged. After the flat start, Nifty oscillated in a narrow band till the end and finally settled at 19794.70 levels. Meanwhile, mixed trends on the sectoral front kept the traders busy wherein pharma, metal and banking ended in the green. The market breadth was also inclined slightly on the advancing side, thanks to action in smallcap space,” said Ajit Mishra, SVP -Technical Research, Religare Broking Ltd.
Mishra also adds that, it is a healthy consolidation in the Nifty so far and we feel only a decisive gap-up move above 19,850 could pave the way for a new high else range bound bias would continue. Participants should keep a close watch on the US markets and the performance of the banking majors for cues. Meanwhile, stay selective and avoid contrarian trades.
Adani Enterprises, Cipla, Divis Labs, Hindalco Industries, and Adani ports & SEZ were the top gainers on the NSE Nifty 50, while the laggers include Wipro, Apollo Hospitals, HCL Technologies, TCS and Britannia Industries.
The Indian Volatility Index (India VIX) closed up by 0.13%.