Markets rise as focus shifts to RBI policy, earnings season; smallcap stocks outperform
Markets witnessed positive performance on Monday, however, the gains were capped as investors were split between concerns of inflationary pressure after the production cut by OPEC+ and RBI’s monetary policy outcomes. Also, the upside comes from some comfort after India’s manufacturing PMI exceeded the street’s expectations. Smallcap stocks were top performers. Oil and gas stocks are under pressure.
Sensex surged by 114.92 points or 0.19% to close at 59,106.44. Nifty 50 jumped by 38.30 points or 0.22% to end at 17,398.05.
Top gainers on Sensex were — Maruti Suzuki surged over 2.5% followed by Bajaj Finance and Bharti Airtel climbed by 1.7% and 1.6% respectively. Stocks like NTPC, Bajaj Finserv, HCL Tech, IndusInd Bank, and M&M advanced between 1% to 1.5%.
Top losers on Sensex were — Infosys and ITC plunging by 1.2% each followed by HUL down by 0.9%. Sun Pharma, Power Grid, and Tata Steel also recorded around half a percent drop.
In the broader market, BSE SmallCap stocks soared over 314 points or 1.2%. While BSE Midcap gained marginally, and BSE Sensex Next 50 zoomed by 162 points.
In terms of sectoral indices, the auto stocks saw major buying due to their monthly sales figures. On BSE, the Auto index soared nearly 392 points. While Consumer Durables and Bankex jumped by 287 points and 247 points respectively. On the other hand, Oil & Gas index plunged by 0.6% after the production cut by OPEC+.
On the markets performance, Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services said, “Investors were of the view that the easing price pressure would provide the central bank with leeway to pause the rate hike. However, the surprise production cut by OPEC+ has fuelled concerns about inflationary pressure, which may prompt central banks to remain hawkish.”
Nair also added, “The downside pressure in the market was mitigated as auto stocks rallied in response to the latest sales data, indicating a surge in demand. Additionally, India’s manufacturing PMI exceeded expectations, demonstrating its swiftest growth rate in three months due to increased output and new orders.”
Going ahead, Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities said, “the nifty is holding a bullish pattern on daily charts, and it is continuously producing a higher bottom shape on intraday charts, which is mostly favorable. The market structure is positive in our opinion, but owing to briefly overbought conditions, we could see some profit taking at higher levels. Buying on dips and selling on rallies would be the best course of action for traders at the moment. In the near future, the index’s important support and resistance levels will be 17300–17250 and 17500–17550 respectively.”
Know your inner investor
Do you have the nerves of steel or do you get insomniac over your investments? Let’s define your investment approach.
Take the test
Download Finplay News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More
Less
Ganesh
http://ganesh@finplay.inFinance enthusiast, Mutual fund expert.