Dalal Street Corner: Banking, Consumer Durable stocks force market to extend losses for 2nd day; what should investors do on Friday?

The Indian market extended losses for the second day in row as indices failed to hold on to gains made in the afternoon session. The domestic equity market was pulled down by banking, financial and consumer durable stocks as the respective sectors witnessed massive sell off amid weak global cues and spike in crude prices.  

However, benchmarks made some recovery in the last 30 minutes as Nifty50 managed to close above 17,200, while the Sensex cut losses to settle with 0.15% loss. 

In the 50-share pack, Dr. Reddy Labs was the biggest gainer, up 4.87% per cent. Kotak Mahindra was the top loser on the index, down by 1,714.15 per cent. Coal India, Hindalco and Ultratech Cement were other gainers in the pack as 22 shares advanced, 27 declined and 1 remained unchanged.  

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The flat closing was triggered by heightened volatility due to surge in global crude oil prices and prospects of the US Fed raising interest rate by 50 basis points in May policy meet, said Mohit Nigam, Head - PMS, Hem Securities. 

Although an upbeat global market mood kept downside for the Indian Benchmarks in limit, Nifty 50 closed the day below the good resistance zone of 17,300, said Nigam. "If the index holds below 17300-mark, then we may see more downfall towards the 17000-16,800 mark which is another support zone on the downside," he said.   

Nigam said that the market breadth was skewed in the favour of bears. "Crucial support for Nifty 50 is 16,800, while Nifty may face some resistance at 17,450," he added. 

Technically, the Nifty50 index showed a rejection from 61.8% retracement levels around 17335 levels, which indicates an immediate resistance zone, said Sachin Gupta, AVP, Research, Choice Broking. 

"The key indicator Stochastic has been moving in the overbought zone, while MACD is suggesting positive crossover on the daily chart. At present, the index has support at 17000 levels while resistance comes at 17470 levels. On the other hand, Bank Nifty has support at 35,000 levels while resistance at 36,300 levels," he added.  

Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan, said Nifty is stuck between the hourly Bollinger Bands, which are in contraction mode, for the last few sessions.  

The Fibonacci retracement shows that the Nifty is finding it difficult to extend beyond the 61.8% retracement of Jan – March decline, which is near 17330, said the Sharekhan expert.  

"On the downside, the junction of 40 DEMA & the 200 DMA, which is near 17,000, is offering support to the index. Structurally, the Nifty is expected to witness sideways action near these parameters before starting the next leg up. Thus, dips towards 17,000 will continue to offer buying opportunities to the short-term traders, he said. 

Disclaimer: The views/suggestions/advice expressed here in this article are solely by investment experts. Zee Business suggests its readers to consult with their investment advisers before making any financial decision