Dalal Street Corner: Market extends losses to 3rd day, ends 1% lower ahead of RBI monetary policy announcements; what should investors do on Friday?

The domestic equity market extended losing streak for the third straight day on Thursday as it awaits Reserve Bank of India's policy outcome on Friday. As per experts, the RBI is expected to keep the rates unchanged and stance accommodative, while it can review growth and inflation forecasts. 

Benchmark Nifty50 corrected by 0.94% to end at 17,639.55, while the Sensex settled with more than 0.97% loss to 59,034.95 as US Fed minutes on interest rate hikes kept the markets across globe on the edge. Nifty midcap and small cap also corrected amid volatility as the indices ended with cuts of 1% and 0.3% respectively on Thursday

Some buying interest was seen in pharma and healthcare, while metal, auto, consumer durables and oil & gas witnessed huge selling pressure amid volatility. 

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Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said volatility increased as the market approached the RBI policy meet outcome. The latest sectoral outperformers like metals, power and oil & gas sectors were the most hit, including mid & small caps, said Nair.

“If announcements are in-line with market expectations, like rates being unchanged, inflation forecast moderately increased and robust economic outlook maintained, then the market will trade positively, considering corrections during the week and falling crude prices or else challenges will prevail," the expert added.

After declining to 37,300 levels, the 12-share Nifty bank pared losses to end with a cut of 75 points to 37,557.35 on Thursday.

"The Bank Nifty index ahead of the RBI policy remains subdued with major selling pressure continuing from HDFC Bank. The index needs to close above 38,000-level for resuming the uptrend. A clear direction will be visible once the policy is announced," said Kunal Shah - Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities.

Technical check:   

Meanwhile, As Nifty50 slid below 17,700 on Thursday, the resistance was seen in 17750-17800 zone

Nifty has fallen from the rising channel on the daily chart which suggests a waning bullishness, says Rupak De - Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities

“The daily RSI is in a bearish crossover. The trend looks negative for the near term. On the lower end, support is visible at 17450 whereas resistance is seen at 17750-17800," added LKP Securities Senior Technical Analyst.

(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)