Last Hour Buying Pushes Up Nifty

Markets opened with a slight negative bias and traded in negative territory for all but last 90 minutes. Nifty dropped to just around 5400 before some strong buying in key heavyweights. IT bigwigs TCS, Wipro and Infosys were the ones that really kick started the recovery and later the others like SBI, RIL and L&T too joined in. RIL came out with its tie-up with BP after the market hours and that should help market to retain the positive momentum. RIL stock should have a positive impact and it is expected to regain four figure mark. SBI has also been resilient and is likely to move up towards 2835-2850. L&T opened on a positive note but then struggled to sustain higher levels and dropped to around Rs 1610. But the rebound from these lower levels suggests that the stock has retained neutral to positive bias and could move up to around Rs 1720-25 and then even to around Rs 1765-1775. Overall, Nifty has found support just around 5400 and it looks likely that Nifty may not break 5375-5400 ahead of Union Budget. On the upside resistance could be seen as the markets heads higher to around 5650.  Some of the banking stocks like SBI, HDFC bank, Syndicate Bank, Allahabad Bank, BOB, BOI and IOB could see more upside. Others that are looking positive are Welspun Corp, HDFC, Educomp, Sobha, Bajaj Auto and JSW Steel.

Nifty has immediate support around 5450-60 and then around 5375-5390 while resistance is seen around 5560-70 and then around 5620.

Markets Brace For More Surprises

The ongoing 5 day rally was cut short abruptly and violently on Friday as Nifty slipped more than 150 points from its intraday peak of 5600. Nifty had rallied another 50 points in the morning session before selling in most heavyweights pushed the indices lower. Selling was seen across the board as bears pounced upon the opportunity. The infra and realty were the first to lose ground but even the banking counters encountered a drubbing. Still, Nifty ended the week with a gain of around 2.8%. Banking index emerged as the biggest gainer with Capital gains and metals index following closely. All sectors finished the week in green. But, as we enter the expiry week for the Feb series the momentum may have shifted towards the bearish scenario as the volumes on Friday were huge.  5350-70 would be the first significant support zone on the downside and while it was broken without much sweat, it is expected to provide some strong support this time around. But more than the technicals, it’s the other happenings that could impact the markets. Monday happens to be the beginning of Budget session and traders and investors would be watching it with anxiety and nervousness. If the parliament is not allowed to function properly then it would provide more fodder to the confident bears and would be a big negative. Then, the CBI enquiries into 2G scam is another event that’s causing much nervousness and there’s always a question hanging in air, ‘who’s next’.  Even Friday’s session was hot on various rumors and that may have added to the unwinding/short selling. And then, we have not even touched upon the various international events, be it Middle-east crisis or tightening by China. So, overall next week is expected to be extremely volatile and it would be foolhardy to anticipate anything.  As for technical levels, as mentioned earlier 5350-5370 should be the first hurdle for bears while more support is seen around 5280-5300. Drop to the second support could be utilized for some bargain buying in banking and Capital Goods/infra counters. On the way up, 5510-25 would be the initial hurdle while strong resistance is likely around 5575-5610.

Banks & Capital Goods Push NIfty Up

After hesitating around 5500 for couple of days and even in the early part of session Nifty finally moved decisively past 5500 and shut shop around 5550. Banks and Capital Goods heavyweight helped the bullish cause as stocks like HDFC bank and L&T pushed for higher levels. IDFC, Suzlon, Bharti, HDFC, Tata Steel and M&M were other significant index gainers. The breadth was positive as more sectors and stocks participated in the rally. Some of the prominent gainers were Sobha, Tata Global, Patel Eng, Jain irrigation, Century, IOB, Educomp, Escorts, Tech Mah, Mphasis, LICHsg, IVRCL, Al Bnk and REC. Few that missed the list and eneded up on losers’ list were Unitech, Sun TV, IBReal, Fortis, Auro Pharma, GMR Infra, HCL Tech, Gail and Wipro. 

Nifty managed to stay above 5450 and finally moved higher to close just around 5550.  We have seen around 7% rise in 5 sessions. There is likely to be some resistance around current levels of 5550-75. But, the fact that market held the levels of 5450 and consolidated around 5500 for couple of sessions suggests that after a brief correction/resistance Nifty could move higher to challenge the next crucial levels of around 5625-40.  Banks continue to lead and that is good news for bulls. HDFC bank has seen a nice up move and could move further to around 2220-30 before experiencing some resistance. SBI has more headroom as it could target 2830-40 and then 2910-30 in coming sessions. It finds significant support at lower levels around 2730 and then 2685-90. LIC has given a breakout on daily charts and could be headed higher to Rs 215 and even Rs 240. Rs 188-193 becomes a strong support level in the short term. Others that are looking good are HDFC( above 653), Indusind Bank, Allahabad Bank, Andhra bank( above 152), ABG ship and L&T.

Nifty has immediate support around 5470-85 while immediate resistance is just around 5560-75 and then around 5620-30.

Nifty Holds Levels

Markets opened on a flat note and for the whole day Nifty traded in a range of 50 odd points ( 5508 on the higher side and 5463 on the lower side). It oscillated up and down on alternate bouts of buying and selling but could not breakout on the either side of the range. Market response to Tata Steel’s results were positive as the stock closed on a strong note at Rs.641 and it appears that the stock has the potential to cross its previous swing high of Rs.664.50. The other stocks which ended with minor gains were Titan, L& T, Axis Bank, Jindal Steel and Bombay Dyeing. On the other hand stocks which were on the losing side were BHEL, Dr Reddy, HDFC and M&M but the losses were of a very minor nature. A few cash stocks like TTK Prestige, Jindal Polyester and ARSS Infra closed with minor gains with low volumes.

As discussed yesterday, we expect the markets to inch up in a slow and steady manner till the presentation of the budget. Nifty is expected to consolidate between 5450 on the lower side and 5550 on the higher end for some time and once it is able to move beyond 5550, it can move upto a level of 5650-5700. As long as 5450 level is held it would be prudent to trade with a positive bias.

Banking Stocks Make Hay As Nifty Consolidates

Markets opened on a flat note and after a small decline of 40 odd points in Nifty in the first two hours it bounced back smartly to cross the crucial resistance level of 5500 in the second half. However, it witnessed profit booking around 5500 levels and finally managed to close at a respectable 5481 levels. From the low of  5177 made on 11^th Feb, Nifty has rallied to an intraday high of 5506.50 ( recovery of 329 points). Since the recovery has been too swift and sharp, Nifty might consolidate between 5400 and 5550 levels for some time before takes any fresh directional move. Banking Stocks especially the likes of SBI, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Bank of Baroda were the ones which appreciated the most during this rally. Reliance showed a lot of strength in today’s trading and now if it is able to trade above Rs.950, then it will help the recovery to gain further steam as it has the highest weightage in the Nifty. ADAG stocks were in limelight as Reliance Capital and Reliance Infra saw huge volumes. Capital good sector stocks like BHEL and L&T saw selling right from the morning and both of them lost around 2% each.

We expect Nifty to trade in the 5400-5550 band for some time and stock specific action will be more pronounced during this period. One should be prepared to trade both sides of the market for the next 1-2 trading sessions but till budget we are of the view that the market is likely to have a positive bias.

Nifty Bounces Back and How!

After a long time did we see strongly up trending day as Nifty not only managed to sustain the positive gap, it also built on the gains as the day progressed. Nifty galloped more than 150 points and closed at the highest point of the day. All round buying was see as most sectors finished the day with sharp gains. Banks rallied sharply for the second successive and Capital Goods sector too saw solid gains. L&T was the biggest gainer amongst the index heavyweights. Some of the big movers for the day were United Spirits, PTC, TVS Motors, Tech Mah, Educomp, Apollo Tyres, Jet, IVRCL Infra, Balrampur Chini, GMR Infra, HDIL, Opto, Havells, JP Associates, Welcorp, KFA, Bajaj Hind, Suzlon, BGR Energy, Jindal SAW and KTK bank. Breadth was extremely positive and for a change it was difficult to spot losers though some pressure was seen in RIL, DLF and Rcom. 

Such strong and sharp rebound has been witnessed for the first time since Nifty started its southward journey from the levels of 6180-6200 in the first week of January. In the two days Nifty has bounced back almost 300 points from the intra day lows of Friday. Nifty is likely to face resistance around 5510-25 and could retreat from around these levels. Most of the stocks that have seen sharp rebounds are approaching decent resistance levels and one needs to be a bit cautious in taking long positions in these. Certain stocks that could still see higher levels are Welspun Corp, HDFC bank( to around 2145-2160), Sesa Goa, TCS and REC.

Nifty has immediate support around 5370-80 and then around 5310-25 while key resistance is likely around 5510-25.

A Positive Friday After A Long Wait

Finally, we did get a positive Friday after 5 consecutive down (4 out of 5 were severely down) Fridays. It was again a combination of short covering and value buying at sub 5200 levels. The sentiments were again low as IIP data was at its lowest in 20 months. We believe that more than just short covering, it was more to do with value buying by HNIs and institutions that helped the indices to claw their way back up. From a high of 6181 in the first week of January we have lost more than 1000 points in about 5 weeks. Nifty has consistently made lower lows and lower highs and momentum has been so strong that even slightest of rebound have been sold into. Most of the sectors have suffered but the bears have been particularly harsh on infra stocks in this leg. Most of the infra stocks have more than halved in value over last 4-5 weeks. But, the question is whether we have hit a sustainable bottom? It would be too early to take a confirmed call on that as it usually is. Nifty has lost almost 18% and around 5400 also we suggested that Nifty had lost almost 15% from recent top and we could be nearing a sustainable bottom. But, that was not to be as Nifty went through the support at 5350 as momentum picked up on the downside. Technically, we are still in the lower low, lower high spiral. Nifty has initial resistance around 5385 and then significant one around 5440-50. Banking stocks bounced back sharply on Friday and led the overall rebound. Positive divergence in leading indicator, RSI is visible in banking heavyweights like HDFC bank, Axis and SBI but many mid cap banking charts still may not be out of woods. Tata Motors came out with very good numbers just at the closing bell and might see a positive open on Monday. However, it might encounter resistance around 1225-1230. TCS has strong support around 1070-80 and could see a technical rebound from current levels. Renuka sugars that also came out with results on Friday is looking weak and a breakdown is possible below Rs 82. One needs to keep a stop below Rs 82 for all long positions. Hindalco is another one that has displayed weakness over last 3-4 sessions and needs to trade consistently above Rs 220-222 to retain the bullish bias. Certain infra stocks like LITL, GMR Infra, Reliance Infra and IVRCL may have seen what we call climactic selling as they witnessed huge volumes last week. But while it may suggest that these stocks may have seen intermediate bottoms it may not necessarily mean an immediate upside. These stocks could enter a consolidation phase before making an attempt to move higher. To summarize, while we may have some evidence of a market that could be bottoming out it would be too early to take a firm view on that. For traders wishing to go long, it would be better to buy call options or to hedge long futures with put options to minimize risk.

Nifty has immediate support around 5225-5240 and significant one around 5150-60 while resistance is likely around 5375-85 and then around 5440-50.