Indian equity indices opened higher for the second consecutive session on Friday, led by banking, auto, energy and IT stocks, ahead of quarterly results starting next week, while global stocks remained subdued after fresh data raised doubts over early US rate cuts in 2024.
The BSE Sensex was trading 277 points or 0.39% higher at 72,125. Nifty50 was trading at 21,748, up 89 points or 0.41% at around 9.20 am.
From the Sensex stocks, NTPC, Wipro, M&M, UltraTech Cement, and TCS opened in the green, while Nestle, Sun Pharma, Asian Paints, and IndusInd Bank opened in the red.
Among individual stocks, Jupiter Wagons rose 4% after the company got a Rs 473 crore contract from India’s Defence Ministry for supplying military wagons.
Shares of smallcap firm Waaree Renewable Technologies hit a 10% upper circuit as its board meeting is scheduled to consider the proposal for a stock split of equity shares of the company.
Sector-wise, Nifty Realty rose 2.1%, and Nifty IT surged 0.7%. Nifty Bank Auto, Financial Services, Media, Metal, and Oil & Gas also opened higher, while Nifty FMCG, Pharma, and Healthcare were in the red.
Experts Take
“An important feature of the ongoing rally in the market is that retail investors, not institutions, are calling the shots. The excessive valuations of the broader market cannot continue for long. Big corrections are likely in the broader market; the only question is when,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
“The Q3 results will impact stock prices. IT stocks have corrected anticipating poor numbers. The result to watch would be that of HDFC Bank which has the potential to move the Bank index,” Vijayakumar said.
Deven Mehata, Derivative Analyst at Choice Broking, “Nifty can find support at 21,600 followed by 21,550 and 21,450. On the higher side, 21,750 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 21,800 and 21,850.
Global Markets
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.1% in the Asian morning, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipping 0.18%. Japan’s Nikkei was something of an outlier, bouncing 0.5% on Friday as exporters got a boost from the yen’s slide back to just shy of 145 per dollar amid a rise in U.S. Treasury yields.
Overnight, Wall Street’s S&P 500 retreated 0.34%, taking its losses this week to 1.7%, setting up its first weekly decline since late October. Futures pointed to a 0.08% rise at the reopen.
FII/DII Tracker
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought Indian shares worth Rs 1,513 crore on a net basis, on Thursday. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold a net Rs 1,387 crore worth of stocks, exchange data showed.
Crude Oil
Oil prices edged higher on Friday after minutes from a Federal Reserve meeting suggested inflation was under control and as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken prepared to visit the Middle East to prevent escalation in the Israel-Gaza conflict.
Brent crude futures were up 34 cents, or 0.44%, to $77.93 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 47 cents, or 0.65%, to $72.66.
Currency Watch
The Indian rupee rose 1 paisa to $83.23 against the US dollar in early trade. The dollar index, which tracks the movement of the greenback against a basket of six major world currencies, surged 0.07% to 102.49 level.
(With inputs from agencies)
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(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)
