Indian equity indices opened Monday’s trading session on a subdued note. The NSE Nifty 50 opened 35 points higher at 24,600. The BSE Sensex opened 69 points higher at 80,669.
Similarly, Bank Nifty opened 100 points or 0.18% higher at 55,716. In line with the benchmarks, the small and midcap stocks also started on a muted note. The Nifty Midcap fell 17 points to 56,620.
“During the week, the market consistently faced selling pressure at higher levels. Technically, on daily charts, the market is holding a lower top formation, and on weekly charts, it has formed a bearish candle. Additionally, the market is comfortably trading below the 50-day and 20-day Simple Moving Averages (SMA), which is largely negative,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research at Kotak Securities.
“We believe that the short-term market outlook is weakening; however, a fresh selloff is possible only if the 24,500 level is broken below. If that happens, the market could slip to around 24,350. Further downside may continue, potentially dragging the index down to 24,200–24,150. On the upside, a move above 24,650 could change sentiment. Above this level, the market could retest the 20-day SMA at 24,800 or the 50-day SMA at the 25,050 zone,” added Chouhan.
The lingering concerns over India’s unresolved trade pact with the US administration, coupled with persistent selling by the FIIs and mixed Q1 earnings so far, would continue to weigh on sentiment, said Prashanth Tapse, Senior Vice President of Research at Mehta Equities.
Adding fuel to the bearish fire was a much weaker than expected US July jobs data, which raises hopes of a rate cut in the September US Fed meeting. On the technical front, deteriorating Nifty’s technical landscape with lower high/low on daily charts suggests Nifty’s downside risk at its 200 DMA at 24050 mark, said Tapse.
Let’s take a look at the key factors to watch out for today’s trading session
Early gainers and laggards
In early trade, among the Nifty 50, top gainers at this hour were Bharat Electronics, Grasim Industries, Shriram Finance, Tata Steel, and Jio Financial Services. On the flip side, the key laggards in the Nifty 50 pack included Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Zoamto (Eternal), HCL Technologies, and Coal India.
Major movers on Monday
The stocks that remained under pressure included Reliance Industries, ITC, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Bharat Electronics, which were the major movers in the morning trade.