Dalal Street Corner: Market ends lower ahead of US GDP data, monthly derivatives expiry; what should investors do on Thursday?

Snapping a four-day winning streak, the Indian markets ended marginally lower amid volatility on Wednesday. The weakness came ahead of the release of US GDP data and monthly derivatives expiry. The market closed in the red last on June 22, when Nifty50 ended with nearly one and half per cent cut.  

The volatility was largely driven by the global markets, especially due to rising crude prices. After opening gap down, the benchmarks pared losses in closing hours as Nifty50 declined by 0.32% to end at 15,799 and the Sensex dropped 150 points or (0.28%) to settle at 53,026.97.  

Following the benchmarks, Nifty midcap and smallcap too declined nearly half per cent each.  

Meanwhile, the recovery in the last hour was largely driven by energy stocks as Nifty Oil & Gas gained over one per cent. It was followed by Metal, Realty and Auto indices which closed higher by 0.24%, 0.22% and 0.15% respectively. Besides, all other Nifty sectoral indices ended in the red with banking, IT and consumer durables taking the maximum hit.  

As the market ended in the red after four positive closings, here is what experts say about current trends in the market:  

Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. 

Consumer confidence is declining rapidly due to the uncontrolled & constant rise in inflation. India had to bear the double whammy effect of a dampening global equity market and rising crude prices as major suppliers like Saudi are unable to boost the output in the short-term. However, the domestic market was able to recover most of the losses due to the strong movement of index heavyweights, PSUs, Metals and Oil & Gas stocks before slipping some gains by the end of the day due to volatile global market. 

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities 

Nifty witnessed a lacklustre trading session before ending with some losses. On the lower end, 15650-15700 acted as support for the day. On the higher end, it found resistance around previous close. The trend is likely to remian sideward to a bit negative in the near term. Any fall below 15650 might pave the way for a serious correction in the market. Resistances on the higher end are placed at 15900/16000. 

Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking Ltd 

Markets will react to the US GDP data in early trades and then the focus would shift to the monthly derivatives expiry.  While the Nifty has been hovering around its crucial hurdle of 15,900, the recent decline in the banking index is pointing towards more pain ahead. Participants should maintain caution and focus more on overnight risk management. 

Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas 

For the last couple of sessions, the Nifty witnessed a gap down opening, which is being followed by recovery during the day. On the downside, the selling pressure is getting absorbed near the key hourly moving averages. In terms of the levels, 15700 is acting as a key support. As long as the Nifty stays above 15700 on a closing basis, it is expected to witness sideways to positive action in the coming sessions. The hourly chart shows that the index is moving up in an upward sloping channel since last week. This indicates that the short-term trajectory is positive & the index can test 16000 in the near term. 

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services. 

Investors should understand the fact that big money is made not by investing in a bull market but by systematically investing through a bear market and waiting patiently for the inevitable bull market. So, invest systematically in high-quality stocks. 

(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.)